Spending time with our forces gives me new energy, Centre is committed to welfare and betterment of the armed forces, says Prime Minister.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi celebrated the festival of lights, Deepavali, on Thursday with jawans manning the Line of Control (LoC) in Gurez valley in Bandipora, more than 200 km from Srinagar.

He distributed sweets and interacted with the jawans on duty in the Gurez Sector, which is prone to shelling from Pakistan army and has seen a number of infiltration attempts this year.

Addressing the jawans, he said like everyone else, he too wished to spend Deepavali with his family. That was why he had come to the jawans of the armed forces, whom he considered to be his “family.”

“Spending time with our forces gives me new energy,” said the Prime Minister.

‘Golden opportunity’

Later, he wrote a brief note in the visitors’ book. “I have had an opportunity to spend the festival of Diwali with you. The presence of brave soldiers at the border, on this festive occasion, lights the lamp of hope and generates new energy among crores of Indians... To accomplish the dream of ‘New India,’ this is a golden opportunity for all of us to work together.”

In a series of tweets, Mr. Modi showered praise on the jawans. “Our forces protect our motherland with utmost valour, displaying the highest traditions of sacrifice and dedication,” he tweeted in the afternoon.

He expressed happiness that the “jawans are practising Yoga regularly.”

Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the Gurez Valley along the Line of Control (LoC) in Jammu and Kashmir to celebrate Diwali with the troops

He said this would definitely enhance their abilities and give them a sense of calm.

The Prime Minister said the Centre was committed to the welfare and the betterment of the armed forces. He mentioned the implementation of ‘One Rank, One Pension,’ which had been pending for decades.

Mr. Modi was accompanied by Army Chief General Bipin Rawat, who arrived in Srinagar on Wednesday and reviewed the security scenario.

This is the fourth year in a row that Mr. Modi has chosen to celebrate Deepavali with jawans. In 2014, he spent the day with the forces at Siachen and Srinagar. In 2015, he visited jawans in Amritsar at the Dogra war memorial. Last year, it was with ITBP jawans in Himachal Pradesh.

Omar thanks PM

Former Chief Minister and National Conference working president Omar Abdullah thanked the Prime Minister for his gesture. “Thank you for celebrating Diwali with the people and troops in Gurez. Please gift the people and troops a tunnel under Razdan Pass,” he tweeted. “Physical and mobile connectivity would be your biggest gifts to the area this Diwali.”

He highlighted the poor mobile connectivity in the area in a series of tweets to the official handle of the Prime Minister.

“You will have noticed that you can’t tweet from there sir. That’s because there is no data and almost no mobile service. Please do help with it.”

(With inputs from PTI)