‘Army to return those who stray across’

This promises to change the face of Indo-Pak bilateral ties. With India expecting the release of two soldiers, Lance Nayak Jagsir Singh and ...

This promises to change the face of Indo-Pak bilateral ties. With India expecting the release of two soldiers, Lance Nayak Jagsir Singh and Sapper Mohammed Arif ‘‘very soon’’, Chief of Army Staff General N.C. Vij said today the Indian Army is trying to return anyone who strays across the border at the earliest.

The two soldiers had been captured by Pakistani troops near Kargil about five years ago and had been written off as deserters while their families suffered in silence. When asked about the two soldiers, Vij said: ‘‘During our last telephonic conversation, the Pakistan DGMO promised that they would be released very soon. They are now being given consular access and their financial benefits would be restored from June 1.’’ He has also ordered that the label of deserter be expunged and asked for interim relief for the families.

Talking of the Pakistanis lodged in Indian prisons, including 35-year-old Salim Ali Shah—a sepoy in Pakistan Army’s Northern Light Infantry— now in Amritsar Central Jail, General Vij said: ‘‘We have conveyed Pakistan’s request to the Centre and the government is working on it. Three ministries— the Ministry of Defence, Ministry of External Affairs and Ministry of Home Affairs—are involved in the process. It is basically a kind of reciprocal arrangement between the two neighbours.’’

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On cross-border infiltration in Kashmir, Gen Vij said: ‘‘We have been able to cut down on the rate of infiltration by nearly half of what it was last year. Our effort is aimed at checking the entry of infiltrators further. However, there are some who have already got in, but we have made a big headway by targeting the leadership of different militant factions including the Lashkar-e-Toiba, Hizbul Mujahideen and Jaish.”

The Army chief also informed that by June 30, the international border between Pakistan and India would be completely fenced. ‘‘We are hopeful of completing the entire fencing by June 30. This would be a very major help to check infiltration.”

In a warning to Army personnel, General Vij, while commenting on the fake killings in Siachen, said: ‘‘Even if anyone up the chain of command is found guilty, he too wouldn’t be spared.’’

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