Territorial Army on Ground? Centre Grants Army Chief Full Authority to Mobilise Reserve Forces

New Delhi: After India’s Operation Sindoor’ on terrorist hideouts in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir (PoJK), Pakistan has made several foiled attempts at retaliation. They fired a barrage of drones towards Indian borders, which were neutralised last night by the Indian anti-drone missile system ‘Akash’.

Now the fresh updates are coming that indicate the centre is empowering the army chief to mobilise the reserve force to tackle Pakistan. The government has given complete authority to the Indian Army to use reserve and territorial army soldiers after the escalation at the border.

The Territorial Army, or reserved armed forces, are the stem of the Indian Armed Forces that commission civilians whose services can be used by the Indian Army as and when required by the country. Those commissioned in the Territorial Army are often regular job holders who are given ranks and positions similar to regular army personnel.

These individuals go through several tests and processes and receive rigorous trainings of all sorts before joining the territorial army. The Indian Army has commissioned many politicians, sportspersons and celebrities over the years who have been members of the Territorial Army.

Former Indian cricket team captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni is also commissioned in the Territorial Army. He was commissioned in 2011 and conferred with the honorary rank of lieutenant colonel. Abhinav Bindra, Kapil Dev, Sachin Tendulkar, and Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore are other notable personalities commissioned in the Territorial Army. 

In the wake of the Pahalgam attack, the Indian Armed Forces conducted ‘Operation Sindoor’ to eliminate terrorist hideouts in PoJK. The attack was well planned and executed, limited to sanitising terror camps. Pakistan, however, retaliated, calling it an ‘act of war’ despite India’s stern warning.

India on Thursday night foiled multiple aerial attempts made by the Pakistani army. ‘Akash’, the indigenous ‘Iron Dome’, deployed at the northern front, intercepted and destroyed Pakistani drones in the air.

The Indian Air Force in close combat took down at least 2 Pakistani fighter jets that tried to intrude into Indian territory, capturing one Pakistani fighter pilot. 

Pakistan fired as many as 400 Turkish drones on Thursday night across Jammu and Kashmir, Rajasthan, and Punjab, Colonel Sofiya Qureshi said in a Friday afternoon press briefing. All of this has happened after India’s ‘operation sindoor’, with now both the countries having engaged in close proximity to war.