Army Chief General Upendra Dwivedi on Friday issued a stark warning to Pakistan, urging the neighbouring country to end its support for terrorism if it wants to “retain its place on the world map.” General Dwivedi said India is better prepared now and signalled a firmer response than during earlier operations.
“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. 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,” he said.
Addressing troops, General Dwivedi urged soldiers to stay vigilant and ready. “Keep yourselves fully prepared now, if god wants, the opportunity will come soon,” he added, stressing the importance of readiness amid ongoing threats.
The army chief also asserted that India had exposed terrorist hideouts inside Pakistan during recent military action. He said the forces identified and struck terrorist bases to neutralise threats, insisting the operations were aimed solely at militants and not ordinary Pakistani civilians so long as their country did not sponsor terrorism.
“We had identified the targets because we only wanted to harm the terrorists. We had aimed to strike their bases. 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,” Dwivedi told reporters, He added that nine terror sites had been targeted—seven by the Army and two by the Air Force.
The comments mark an escalatory tone from India’s military leadership and are likely to intensify attention on cross-border tensions and counterterrorism operations in the region.