‘Bravery’- an apparently heartening word that has followed ‘Indian army’ like a shadow and may what be the situation, the soldiers step into action without even caring about their lives. It’s because of them, the nation is maintaining its status quo loud and proud.
While the whole world had their eyes on the Balakot airstrike in the wake of Pulwama terror attack, the Indian army silently conducted a massive operation to neutralise death threats posed by insurgents along the Indo-Myanmar border.
The joint operations between Indian and Myanmar armies were conducted from between February 17 and March 2 to take preventive measures so as to wipe out a big threat to the massive Kaladan Multi-Modal Transit Transport Project which is planned to connect Kolkata port with Sittwe Port in Myanmar.
The project aims to cut down the distance to travel between Mizoram and Kolkata by close to a thousand kilometres, which will, in fact, reduce travel time by at least four days. It is to be noted that the threat was from an insurgent group in Myanmar. The group reportedly being started by the Kachin Independence Army, is labelled as a terrorist group by Myanmar.
Well, the operation was carried out when the world was focused on the Indian Air Force airstrike in Balakot, Pakistan. The airstrike targeted Jaish-e-Mohammed’s (JeM) largest terror camp which was seen as a massive response to the Pulwama terror attack in which 40 CRPF jawans were martyred.
As per the evaluations, the mega Kaladan Project was under big threat from the Arakan Army. Interestingly, China has also been conducting development projects at Kyaukpyu port near Sitwe.
The Indian Army made a smart move by planning a mission to eliminate insurgent groups that had set up bases south of Mizoram in Myanmar. “In the last two years the Kachin Independence Army (KIA) that trains the Arakan Army in the Kachin State of Myanmar adjoining China had readied around 3000 cadres that moved to the South closing in on areas adjoining the Lawngtala district of Mizoram,” said a senior officer in the security establishment.
The Arakan Army is also well trained and equipped staff in setting up Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) making the biggest-ever threat to the project and it workers even greater. “This was a serious concern both for India and Myanmar,” a source said.
“A deal was cut out that after the action adjoining Mizoram the Myanmar army will hit the insurgent camps of other groups that have been targeting India. This resulted in totally wiping out of Taga, the HQ of NSCN (K). Based on specific inputs provided by us the Myanmar Army hit these camps and is now occupying them,” said a security officer.
A dozen camps have been completely destroyed here, sources said. The planning for the joint operations started around 2 months back, sources said. The sources went on to say that the Arakan Army along with KIA is part of the affiliation of insurgent groups called the Northern Alliance said to be supported by China.
