The army chief, General Upendra Dwivedi, on Friday said Pakistan must stop supporting terrorism if it wants to “retain its place on the world map”.
Defence minister Rajnath Singh had issued a similar warning to Pakistan on Thursday over its recent military build-up near the Sir Creek region.
Speaking to soldiers at Anupgarh in Rajasthan, General Dwivedi said: “India, as a country, is fully prepared this time. And this time, it will not show the restraint that it showed during Operation Sindoor 1.0.”
Dwivedi said: “This time, we will take a step forward and act in a manner that will make Pakistan think whether it wants to remain on the world map or not. If Pakistan wants to be in geography, then it must stop state-sponsored terrorism.”
He also told Indian soldiers to remain ready for action. “Keep yourselves fully prepared now. If God wants, the opportunity will come soon,” he said, underscoring the importance of vigilance amid continuing threats.
Dwivedi said India had exposed terrorist hideouts in Pakistan during its military confrontation, and that without India’s intervention, these would have remained concealed from the world’s view.
He reaffirmed that nine terror sites inside Pakistan had been targeted during Operation Sindoor, seven by India’s army and two by its air force.
“We had identified the targets because we only wanted to harm the terrorists. We had aimed to strike their bases,” he said.
“We have no complaints against ordinary Pakistani citizens, so long as their country does not sponsor terrorists. Because terrorists were being sponsored, those terrorist targets were hit.”
Rajnath had on Thursday warned Islamabad over its recent military build-up near the Sir Creek region, saying any misadventure would be met with a strong and “decisive response” from India that could “change both history and geography”.
The Sir Creek region, a 96km marshy strip in the Rann of Kutch where the creek meets the Arabian Sea, is at the centre of a longstanding boundary issue between the two nuclear-armed neighbours. The creek separates Gujarat from Pakistan’s Sindh province.
In this screengrab from a video posted by @adgpi via X on May 10, 2025, visuals of ‘Operation Sindoor’ in light of the ongoing military conflict between India and Pakistan.
“If Pakistan dares to act in the Sir Creek sector, the reply will be so strong that it will change both history and geography,” the defence minister said.
“In 1965, the Indian Army showed courage by reaching Lahore and in 2025, Pakistan must remember that the road to Karachi also passes through the creek.”
Sources in the security establishment said Pakistan had been rapidly expanding its military footprint in the Sir Creek sector, deploying coastal defence boats, marine assault craft and naval ships, besides strengthening air defence with radars, missiles and surveillance aircraft.
