New, powerful India will give befitting reply to Pak: Rajnath Singh

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Saturday said that the 'new and powerful India' will give a befitting reply to any efforts made by Pakistan to destabilise peace in the country.

Singh, who was addressing the Shaheed Samman Yatra in Uttarakhand's Pithoragarh, said, "Pakistan makes all efforts to destabilise peace in India but we have sent a clear message to them that we will hit back. This is a new and powerful India."

"We have given a clear message to our neighbour on the western border that if it cross its limits, we will just not retaliate on the borders but can even cross over into its territory and do surgical and airstrikes," he said.

"We have one more neighbour (which does not seem to understand things)," the defence minister said without naming China.

Singh said he must make it clear that if there is an attempt by any country in the world to "occupy even an inch of our land, India will give a fitting reply to it".

Noting that everyone was aware of India's defining victory in 1971, Singh warned India's neighbours of not living under any delusion.

The defence minister said there was an attempt to create misapprehensions in Nepal about a road from Lipulekh Pass to Mansarovar through Dharchula that was inaugurated by him recently.

"But it has failed to affect our close cultural ties with Nepal," he said.

Conferring Nepal Army Chief General Prabhu Ram Sharma with the honorary rank of Indian Army Chief recently is a reassertion of India's close cultural ties with Nepal, Singh said.

Launching the second leg of the ‘Shaheed Samman Yatra', Singh said the state government should ensure that names of matyrs and the names of their villages should be inscribed on the Sainya Dham being built in Dehradun as a memorial tribute to them. Soil from homes of 1,734 martyrs' families in Uttarakhand are being collected in urns to be brought to Dehradun and used in the construction of the Sainya Dham, a vision of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Speaking on occasion Singh also informed that the ex-gratia amount provided in case of the battle casualties has been increased to Rs 8 lakh by the Centre.

"Earlier, the ex-gratia amount for the battle casualty was Rs 2 lakh which has been increased by four times," he said.

Recalling his visit to Rezang La in Ladakh on November 18, he said, "I went to Rezang La where I was told that about the miracle performed by 124 jawans of Kumaon Battalion...It can never be forgotten. I was told that 114 jawans were killed in action, but they killed over 1200 Chinese soldiers. I had the privilege of visiting the place."

He also stated that if there is a fifth Dham in Uttarakhand, it will have the soil from the homes of soldiers killed in action.

"There are four Dhams in Uttarakhand and if 'Sainya Dham' is made, we will have a fifth Dham here. This Dham will have soil from martyrs' homes," he added.

BJP Chief JP Nadda had inaugurated the Shaheed Samman Yatra in Chamoli on November 15 to pay tribute to the sacrifices made by soldiers from Uttarakhand.