India has more effective options than surgical strikes to teach Pakistan a lesson, chief of army staff General Bipin Rawat told HT in an exclusive interview on Tuesday. “Pakistan thinks it is fighting an easy war that’s paying them dividends, but we have options (other than surgical strikes) that are far more impactful and effective. The army chief also alluded to the fact that while there was an official bounty on the head of Lashkar-e-Taiba founder Hafiz Saeed, it did not lead to any crackdown on the militant leader or his outfit. On holding peace talks with Kashmiri leaders, Rawat was categorical that “dialogue can happen only when there is peace”. I don’t know what my boys are going through, but I have to be the motivator.”The army chief shrugged off reports of a recent skirmish between the Chinese People’s Liberation Army and Indian troops in Sikkim.

Source: Hindustan Times June 28, 2017 03:22 UTC