PolicyDefence
Rajnath Singh reaches Sherathang to spend Diwali with troops near Nathu La
The Defence Minister arrived in East Sikkim on Sunday morning, the second day of his Diwali programme with the armed forces on the China border.
Key points
- Defence Minister Rajnath Singh arrived at Sherathang in East Sikkim on Diwali morning.
- He is due to pay tribute at the Sherathang War Memorial for the 1967 Nathu La and Cho La clashes.
- On Saturday he met Army and Air Force personnel at Bagdogra and Sukna.
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh reached Sherathang in East Sikkim on Sunday morning to spend Diwali with troops deployed near Nathu La, the pass on the India-China border at about 14,140 feet.
He is scheduled to pay tribute at the Sherathang War Memorial, which commemorates the soldiers who fell in the 1967 clashes at Nathu La and Cho La, and to meet the personnel posted in the high-altitude sector. No time for the tribute or the interaction had been announced when this report was filed, and no remarks from him at Sherathang were available.
Two days with the forces
The Sikkim leg follows a Saturday spent in north Bengal, where Singh met Air Force personnel at Bagdogra Airfield and Army troops at Sukna near Siliguri. There he spoke of the need for stronger digital defence, reliable information, awareness of the surrounding area and modern technology in warfare, according to a Defence Ministry statement.
He also said defence manufacturing had grown significantly over the past decade, covering drones, anti-drone systems, missiles, rifles, guns and tanks, with arms exports up many times over, and that technology counts for little without brave soldiers.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi is marking the festival with security forces in Bastar, Chhattisgarh. Singh’s programme was announced a day earlier on X.