Sitharaman visits forward army & airforce bases in Assam & Aruchal

Tezpur, Nov 5: Union Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman visited the forward army posts in Aruchal Pradesh and air force base in Eastern Assam on Sunday.

The visit to the forward army and air force bases followed by her visits to Bomdilla and Itagar in Aruchal Pradesh on Saturday, where she attended the iuguration ceremony of the Buddha Mahotsav 2017 and called on the Governor of Aruchal Pradesh at Raj Bhawan in Itagar.

In her visit to the forward army post of Kibithu in Eastern Aruchal Pradesh, which is in continuation with her visits to forward areas along the Line of Actual Control, she was accompanied by Lt Gen Abhay Krish and other senior officers of the Indian Army.

The minister was briefed on the situation and defence preparedness along the Line of Actual Control. She also interacted with the troops and appreciated their dedication to the service and efforts in such a remote and inhospitable terrain. As part of this visit, the Defence Minister also visited the important Eastern air base of Chabua, where she was received by Air Marshal Rajesh Kumar, V M Senior Air Staff Officer HQ Eastern Air Command, and Air Commodore George Thomas VM, Air Force Station Chabua.

During the visit she also took stock of the operatiol preparedness and infrastructure development of the base. The strategic base presented a static display of the combat assets available at the station to the Defence Minister, which included the Sukhoi 30MKI fighter aircraft and modern Missiles. She complimented the air warriors for their professiol approach and commitment in the service of the tion and also appreciated the operatiol readiness, ongoing infrastructure development and the high morale of the Air Force personnel at the base, stated in a press release.