Army Chief visits forward areas in Ladakh; takes stock of ground situation

Army Chief Gen M M Naravane on Wednesday visited various forward areas in eastern Ladakh and took stock of the Army's combat preparedness in the region in the wake of the bitter border standoff with China.

Gen Naravane arrived in Leh on Tuesday on a two-day visit.

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The Chief of Army Staff reviewed the overall security situation in the region with Northern Army Commander Lt Gen Yogesh Kumar Joshi, commander of the 14 Corps Lt Gen Harinder Singh and other senior Army officials on Tuesday afternoon.

"General M M Naravane #COAS visited forward areas in Eastern #Ladakh and reviewed the operational situation on the ground. #COAS commended the troops for their high morale and exhorted them to continue working with zeal and enthusiasm," the Army said in a tweet.

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Soon after arriving in Leh, Gen Naravane visited an Army hospital where 18 soldiers injured in the clash in Galwan Valley on June 15 are undergoing treatment.

Twenty Indian Army personnel were killed and 18 seriously injured in the violent clash with the Chinese military in Galwan Vally.

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The Army chief is learned to have directed the commanders to keep a high level of alertness to deal with any Chinese misadventure, people familiar with the issue said.

The Leh-based 14 Corps is tasked to take care of the security situation along the Line of Actual Control in the Ladakh region.