India had launched Operation Sindoor against Pakistan on May 7, 2025, in the wake of the April 22 Pahalgam terrorist attack.
On the border with China, Dwivedi said the situation remains stable and high vigil is being maintained. He also said that joint activity by China and Pakistan in the Shaksgam valley is illegal and India does not approve of it.
Speaking ahead of the Army Day, the army chief said that terrorist activities have reduced drastically but support for terrorism from across the border continues and that the majority of active terrorists in J&K are of Pakistani origin.
“In 2025, 31 terrorists were eliminated, of which 65% were of Pakistan origin, including the three perpetrators of the Pahalgam attack neutralised in operation Mahadev. Local terrorist recruitment is almost non-existent,” Dwivedi said.
According to the army’s estimates, eight terrorist camps are active across the border, housing 100-150 Pakistani terrorists. Dwivedi said a close eye is being kept on them and any future misadventure would be strongly responded to.
“No forces are coming back, because approximately 140 terrorists are within the hinterland, out of which only 10 could be local terrorists. Rest all are Pakistani terrorists,” he said.
Reminding that Operation Sindoor is continuing, Dwivedi said the army is keeping the pressure on in J&K and no forces are being called back. As reported by ET, the army has in fact increased deployments during the coldest winter period to crack down on terrorists who use the higher mountain ranges to create makeshift hideouts.
