Mumbai: Lieutenant General Sanjay Kulkarni (retd), who led an Indian Army team to secure the top of the icy heights of the Siachen Glacier way back in 1984, expressed surprise at the continuation of challenges in what has become the world’s highest battlefield.
“I had never thought in my life that this operation would go on for so long, from 1984 till today. And it is continuing,” Lt. General Kulkarni told PTI on the sidelines of the Girimitra Sammelan, an annual congregation of mountaineers in the financial capital, where he regaled all with the details of the operation to secure strategic advantage by occupying the Siachen heights.
He said the Army undertook Operation Meghdoot on April 13, 1984, and welcomed the curiosity with which civilians continue to be interested in his movement as a young captain leading a contingent up to Bilafond La to secure the height.
Although a ceasefire has been in place since 2003, the Indian Army cannot demilitarize the region. Senior officers like Lt Gen Satish Dua and Lt Gen Syed Ata Hasnain warn that vacating the glacier would risk a linkage between Pakistan and China, compromising national security.
Known as the world’s highest battlefield, temperatures drop to -60°C, meaning more casualties historically occur due to avalanches and extreme weather than direct combat.
Former military leaders, including former Army Chief General J J Singh, have spoken out against past political attempts to consider demilitarization or abandoning the glacier.
