Operation Sindoor remains ongoing and any future misadventure by Pakistan will be met with a firm and effective response, Chief of the Army Staff (COAS) General Upendra Dwivedi said on Tuesday, underlining that the armed forces retain full operational freedom to act against threats.
Addressing an annual press conference, General Dwivedi said, “As you may be aware, Operation Sindoor remains ongoing, and a future misadventure will be resolutely responded to.”
He described the operation as India’s “calibrated and resolute response to cross-border terrorism,” which demonstrated the military’s readiness, precision and strategic clarity, while resetting strategic assumptions by striking deep to dismantle terror infrastructure and puncturing Islamabad’s “longstanding nuclear rhetoric”.
General Dwivedi said Operation Sindoor stands as a clear demonstration of tri-service coordination under decisive political direction.
“It is the best example of jointness, where the armed forces were given full freedom to act or respond,” he said.
India launched Operation Sindoor on May 7 last year in retaliation for the April 22 terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir’s Pahalgam, claimed by The Resistance Front, a front organisation of the Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba.
The operation targeted multiple terror infrastructure sites in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK), resulting in the elimination of more than 100 terrorists, according to official estimates. Pakistan’s subsequent missile and drone attacks were intercepted by Indian air defence systems, after which India struck Pakistani airfields, leading to a ceasefire on May 10.
Revealing the scale of preparedness during the operation, the army chief said the armed forces were fully prepared to launch ground offensives if Pakistan had attempted any misadventure.
“In those 88 hours, you saw that the army’s mobilisation to expand the conventional space was such that if Pakistan made any mistake, we were fully prepared to launch ground operations,” he said.
He noted that earlier assessments suggested conventional military options were shrinking due to the risk of rapid escalation to the nuclear domain.
“This time, the action we took — especially the kind of firing that took place in Jammu and Kashmir and the way we addressed it — showed that we expanded the conventional space,” he said, adding that Indian forces eliminated around 100 Pakistani personnel during the course of the operation.
“In Jammu and Kashmir, since May 10, the situation along the western front and Jammu and Kashmir remains sensitive but firmly under control,” he said.
“In 2025, 31 terrorists were eliminated of which 65 per cent were of Pakistan origin, including the three perpetrators of Pahalgam attack neutralised in Operation Mahadev. Active local terrorist is now in single digits. Terrorist recruitment is almost non-existent.”
He later said: “Only two cases of recruitment were reported in 2025.”
Responding to a question on terror camps in PoK, the army chief said, “As far as our eyes and ears are concerned, since Operation Sindoor is underway, they will remain fully alert. Under this, we have already put in place whatever actions are required from our side.”
He said nearly eight camps were still active to the army’s knowledge — two opposite the International Border and six opposite the Line of Control.
“We believe there is still some presence or training activity in these camps… If any such activity happens again, we will certainly carry out whatever action we intend to take,” he said.
General Dwivedi said the situation along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) with China has remained stable but requires constant vigilance.
“Renewed contact, and confidence-building measures are contributing to the gradual normalisation of the situation,” he said, adding: “Concurrently, capability development and infrastructure enhancement are progressing through a whole-of-government approach.”
The army chief said the past year saw a sharp rise in the number and intensity of armed conflicts worldwide.
“This global shift underlines a simple reality: nations that stay prepared, prevail,” he said, reiterating that Operation Sindoor showcased India’s preparedness and resolve.
He stressed that future conflicts would require a whole-of-nation approach.
“The battle of the future will not be won by a single arm or even a single service. It will be a national-level enterprise,” he said, referring to Prime Minister’ Narendra Modi’s vision encapsulated in the mantra of ‘Jai’, where “jointness integrates our effort, Atmanirbharta empowers our capability and accelerated innovation drives ideas into action”.
Highlighting improving ground conditions in Jammu and Kashmir, he pointed to increased development activity, a revival of tourism and the peaceful conduct of the annual Amarnath Yatra.
More than 4 lakh pilgrims participated this year, surpassing the five-year average.
“The transition from terrorism to tourism is steadily becoming a reality,” the army chief said.