Surgical strikes across LoC

The Army's surgical strikes across the LoC on Thursday marked a shift from the policy of 'strategic restraint'. But its first signs came on October 7, 2014, when national security adviser Ajit Doval summoned the BSF director general and asked him to respond to Pakistan's cross-border firing with "full force" even on slightest provocation.

T 2394 - "Don't mess with the Indian Army" !!

— Amitabh Bachchan (@SrBachchan) September 29, 2016

Punjab has started the process of evacuating nearly 1,000 villages in the six border districts of the state after Indian armed forces carried out surgical strikes across the Line of Control on Thursday. The affected villages are within 10 km of the India-Pakistan border in the districts of Amritsar, Tarn Taran, Gurdaspur, Pathankot, Fazilka and Ferozepur.

Indian Army's "surgical strikes" on terrorist launch pads across the Line of Control has sent a message to Pakistan to not take India for granted, security experts said on Thursday, and noted that there may not be escalation in the situation as Islamabad has denied there was any such military action.

Pakistan defence minister Mohammad Khwaja's threat to use "tactical" nuclear weapons is not just a case of political hyperbole. The notion that nuclear weapons deter retaliation by the Indian Army while allowing Pakistan to send jihadis to carry out terror strikes in India is a deeply held view in the Pakistani establishment.

The argument was not totally misplaced as the spectre of nuclear escalation has weighed on India as well - till the line was decisively breached by the surgical strikes by the Indian Army on terror launchpads in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. The decision indicated that India will no longer buy into the threat of an "irrational" opponent.

The Obama administration urged India and Pakistan to continue discussions on the military confrontation between the two sides to avoid escalation, while publicly slamming Pakistan and reiterating its support to India on the terrorism issue.

There was no condemnation or censure of India's purported surgical strike, which in any case Pakistan said has not taken place.

Indian Army sources said, "As regard (to the) report of killing of eight Indian Army personnel reported in sections of Pakistan media, the report is completely false and baseless."

(ANI reports quoting Army sources)

(ANI reports)

In the wake of India's conduct of surgical strikes across the Line of Control, Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has called a joint session of the Parliament on October 5.

"Joint session of the Parliament will be convened on Wednesday to reaffirm the national resolve for safeguarding the sovereignty and preserving the territorial integrity of the motherland against any kind of external or internal threat as well as reiterating the moral, political, and diplomatic support to the people of Kashmir," Prime Minister Sharif said, reports Geo News.

Officials said the Border Security Force (BSF) headquarters in New Delhi has issued orders to all its units along IB in Jammu, Punjab, Rajasthan and Gujarat to step up vigil and bolster their numbers at the posts by bringing in all personnel who are in the reserve.

In order to ensure civilian safety, they said, members of the public will not be allowed today to witness the Attari-Wagah retreat ceremony from the stands right next to the designated border pillar in Punjab.

Following a meeting of senior leaders, party chief Sonia Gandhi issued a statement saying, "The party stands with the government in its actions today to protect our country's security and deal with the menace of terrorism from across the border. This is a strong message that conveys our country's resolve to prevent further infiltration and attacks on our security forces and our people."

I also congratulate the Prime Minister Shri @Narendramodi on taking a bold decision and showing true grit and mettle in crucial times. 3/3

— Rajnath Singh (@rajnathsingh) September 29, 2016

Punjab: Villages near Attari sector being evacuated after #SurgicalStrike conducted by Indian Army. pic.twitter.com/ma9D7SMCp2

— ANI (@ANI_news) September 29, 2016

"All of us stand firmly united against terrorism and those who support and sponsor it. The Congress Party and I salute the Indian Army and our jawans for acting valiantly to defend our country and our people. Jai Hind," Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi said on Army's surgical strikes across the Line of Control.

Stocks reeled under huge losses on Thursday as benchmark Sensex plunged sharply by over 465 points, the biggest single-day fall in three months, after India carried out "surgical strikes" last night on terror launchpads across LoC.

The rupee too was in the line of fire, down 49 paise (intra-day) against the US dollar, to trade at 66.95.

External affairs minister Sushma Swaraj meets Congress president Sonia Gandhi to brief about Army's surgical strikes.

Delhi: All party meeting at MHA ends ( In pic: Amit Shah and EAM Sushma Swaraj leave) #SurgicalStrike pic.twitter.com/SGCxECJnKj

— ANI (@ANI_news) September 29, 2016

Today's strikes signal the rise of a new India where the GoI doesn't get cowed down by nefarious designs of terrororists. #ModiPunishesPak

— Amit Shah (@AmitShah) September 29, 2016

The Indian rupee on Thursday tumbled to its lowest level in the last one week after the army announced that it had carried out "surgical strikes" on terror camps across the Line of Control with Pakistan.

The sharp fall occurred around 1.30 pm when the rupee depreciated to 66.95-96 to a dollar. This level was last seen on September 22.

However, the Indian currency bounced back marginally to 66.85 to a greenback before speculative selling dragged it lower to 66.89 at 2.40 pm

This (surgical strike) is very good, but had it been done before we would have been happier: Wife of #Uri martyr SK Vidyarthi (from Gaya) pic.twitter.com/rlamzBsGUY

& mdash; ANI (@ANI_news) September 29, 2016

Amid "surgical strikes" which India claimed it carried out on terrorist launch pads across the LoC, Pakistan's Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif called the federal cabinet meeting on Friday to discuss the growing tensions between India and Pakistan. Officials from the Interior and Defense ministries will brief the Prime Minister over national security, an official statement from the Prime Minister's House stated.

Statement by DGMO #IndianArmy on 29 Sep 16 pic.twitter.com/ckYOApWcHQ

& mdash; ADG PI - INDIAN ARMY (@adgpi) September 29, 2016

Following Indian army's surgical strike, Pak rangers fired at BSF posts around 4 am in Baramulla and Rajouri, top sources tell ToI.

& mdash; Neeraj Chauhan (@NchauhanTOI) September 29, 2016