Modern-day warfare transcends borders, robust military supported by prepared citizens must to secure national interests: Singh

PIONEER EDGE NEWS SERVICE/Nainital

Defence minister Rajnath Singh said that present-day warfare transcends borders, with national security encompassing economic, digital, energy, and even food security. He also underscored the need of a robust military supported by prepared citizens capable of standing shoulder-to-shoulder to protect the nation under any circumstances. Virtually addressing the Raising Day celebrations and the Diamond Jubilee of Sainik School, Ghorakhal here on Satrurday, he asserted that the nature of conflicts has undergone a paradigm shift as a nation can today be weakened through economic, cyber, space and information warfare, which demands every citizen to remain vigilant and prepared at all times.

While the government, under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, is leaving no stone unturned to equip the defence forces with niche weapons & technologies, Singh emphasised that the citizens, especially the youth, need to develop mental toughness and intellectual clarity through discipline and determination to help the nation tackle any and every situation. Referring to the concept of VUCA (Volatile, Uncertain, Complex and Ambiguous), he exhorted the students to develop their own version of VUCA – Vision, Understanding, Courage and Adaptability, to navigate modern challenges effectively. Highlighting the steps taken by the government towards ensuring that a larger number of youth imbibe the values essential for nation-building, the Defence minister stated that recently a decision was taken to establish 100 new Sainik Schools across the country in the Public-Private Partnership mode. He added that another initiative includes increasing the number of vacancies within the National Cadet Corps (NCC). “Earlier, the NCC had an intake capacity of 17 lakh cadets; this has now been expanded to 20 lakh,” he said. Singh described the decision of admission of girls into Sainik Schools as historic and revolutionary, which is bolstering the country’s ‘Nari Shakti’. These girls will, in the times to come, become the torchbearers of ‘Nari Shakti’ and scale new heights across various sectors, he said.

Extending his greetings to students, faculty, alumni and their families on Sainik School, Ghorakhal completing 60 years of dedicated service to the nation, Singh pointed out that over decades, the school has sent more than 800 students to the National Defence Academy and over 2,000 candidates to the Armed Forces through various entry schemes such as Combined Defence Services Examination and Air Force Common Admission Test.