Hailing ‘Operation Sindoor’ as a great achievement, Vice-President Jagdeep Dhankhar said Wednesday no one is asking for proof since the terrorists targeted in the strikes at terror bases in Pakistan “revealed the proof” to the entire global fraternity as their coffins were escorted by the “military force” and “political force” of Pakistan.
Dhankhar was speaking at an event at the Mormugao Port in South Goa’s Vasco, where he inaugurated three key projects — a 3-MW solar power plant, commercial operation of two harbour mobile cranes and a covered dome for coal handling.
While praising the dedication of the Indian Coast Guard for maintaining a close watch on the country’s maritime frontier, the Vice-President said that India’s precision military strikes at Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) and Lashkar-e-Taiba bases in Muridke and Bahawalpur sent a global message.
“A message that Prime Minister gave to the entire world from the heartland of Bihar. Message [that] terrorism will no longer go unpunished. The punishment was exemplary. The strike was deep in the territory, beyond the international border, keeping in mind our ethos to target only terrorists,” he said.
Dhankhar said India responded “remarkably, effectively, to Pakistan’s terrorist misadventure at Pahalgam on April 22.”
“What a satisfaction for everyone…high achievement of Operation Sindoor. No one is asking for proof because the terrorists targeted revealed the proof to the entire global fraternity because coffins were escorted by military force of that country, by political force of that country, and by terrorists. A great achievement, perhaps unrivalled in the annals of democratic functioning,” he said.
Dhankhar said to fulfil the aim of a ‘Viksit Bharat’ in 2047, an eight-fold increase in per capita income would be required. “This calls for peace on our frontiers. Economic development cannot take place if we have war-like situations. Peace is fundamental to growth and development. Peace comes from strength, strength in security, strength in economy, strength in development, and deep commitment, unflinching commitment, unqualified commitment to nationalism. National security demands unshakeable, unflinching commitment to nationalism and relentless preparedness,” he said.
Dhankhar said in rapidly shifting geopolitical realities where global trade, strategic choke points, cyber threats and transnational crimes intersect, enforcing rules-based order at sea is increasingly challenging.
“Let us be leaders in shipbuilding. That is essential. The demands will rise. I think if I am not mistaken, we carry 95 percent of our cargo by ship, that is 70 percent in value. The demand will increase because our economy is taking, not a leap, it is taking a quantum jump. Private investment, national and global, is fundamental to development, particularly in the infrastructure domain. Ports, airports, waterways, shipbuilding, and the likes. It will hugely serve national interest, if developmental issues, issues of interest in core areas of growth, are kept beyond political prism and partisan interests,” he added.
