Rajnath Singh pays tribute at Arunachal\'s Tawang War Memorial

New Delhi:  Delivering a tough message to China, defence minister Rajnath Singh on Tuesday reached the forward post of Bum La in Tawang district of Arunachal Pradesh, and carried out a first-hand on-ground assessment of the operational preparedness of the armed forces.

Singh performed "Shastr Puja (worship of weapons)" and celebrated Dasara with soldiers in this strategically key region that is close to the frontier with China.

The defence minister, accompanied by Army Chief Gen. Manoj Pande, interacted with the troops deployed in the frontline locations along the Line of Actual Control (LAC).

Singh was briefed about strategic points at the Bum La, which also has the Indo-China border personnel meeting point. Last year in December Indian and Chinese troops clashed in the Yangtse area of Tawang in Arunachal Pradesh.

Tawang is a key religious centre for Buddhism, and is a key region having significant strategic importance. India has been ramping up military infrastructure in the region in the last few years.

The defence minister visited the Tawang War Memorial, laid a wreath and offered tributes to the bravehearts who made the supreme sacrifice during the 1962 Indo-China war.

In an interaction with soldiers after visiting Bum La and other forward posts, Singh asserted that there was no option but to bolster the country's security apparatus in view of the global scenario.

He said that all efforts are being made by the government to strengthen the nation’s military prowess through indigenous production of defence equipment.

"Earlier, we used to rely on imports to upgrade our military. But today, a number of major weapons and platforms are being manufactured within the country. Foreign companies are being encouraged to share their technology and produce the equipment in India with domestic industry. In 2014, the value of defence exports was about Rs 1,000 crore, but today we are exporting defence equipment worth thousands of crores," he said.