Land remains 'currency of victory' in wars: Army chief Gen Dwivedi

Dominance over land will remain the “currency of victory” in wars, said General Upendra Dwivedi, Chief of the Army Staff, on Tuesday as he spoke about Operation Sindoor and the conflict in Ukraine.

Sindoor was a “model” of military coordination involving soldiers, policymakers and industry, he said at the plenary session of the 52nd National Management Convention of the All India Management Association in New Delhi, referring to the four-day operation against terrorist infrastructure in Pakistan in May.

"When you go back to the Alaska conference that took place between the two presidents, they just discussed how much land has to exchange hands," Dwivedi said, referring to last month’s summit talks between US President Donald Trump and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin in Alaska on the Ukraine conflict.

“Land remains the currency of victory, especially with India’s two-and-a-half front threat.” The modern battlespace comprises modern domains like cyberspace and information systems. The Indian Army operates in various domains, including direct firepower and cognitive operations.

India’s security and economic growth depend on leadership, indigenous innovation and coordinated response to challenges, he said. “War is always unpredictable. We are not sure what kind of psychological impact a particular issue would make.”

“Low-cost, high-technology systems can beat back a superior adversary. David versus Goliath is real in modern warfare.” The Army is pursuing “spiral development” of both equipment and organisations, backed by over Rs 26,000 crore in capital procurement and about Rs 60,000 crore in revenue procurement.

New brigades and battalions called Rudra, Bhairav, and Shaktiban (an artillery regiment) are equipped with Indian systems, he said, noting that multiple suppliers will be involved in indigenisation of defence manufacturing. The Army works with Indian Institutes of Technology and the Indian Institute of Science in Bengaluru for innovation in military tools and materials.

India draws a clear distinction between political groupings such as the Quad, a strategic forum comprising India, Australia, Japan, and the United States, and military alliances like AUKUS, a trilateral security partnership between Australia, the United Kingdom, and the United States, he said.