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Troop mobilisation almost complete
By Our Special Correspondent
NEW DELHI, DEC. 30. India is about to complete its military mobilisation along the International Border and the Line of Control, according to highly-placed Government sources. Pakistan's troop build-up, which also includes positioning of Hatf-1 and Hatf-2 missiles, is also nearing completion.
India has already taken the crucial decision of pushing its 33 Corps that faces China in the east towards the northern theatre. The presence of these troops in the north is meant to enhance the asymmetry in the force levels between the two countries.
The signal in this movement is clear. Analysts say India wants to convey to Pakistan that neither its existing differences with China nor commitments towards counter-insurgency operations in the North-East will deter it from exerting maximum pressure to enforce a Pakistan crackdown on terrorists operating from its soil.
The aircraft carrier, INS Viraat, is also out of harbour, though full naval mobilisation is being hampered by the presence of U.S. warships deployed in support of the Afghan operations in the Arabian Sea.
Pakistan has also moved its major military assets from its frontier with Afghanistan, the sources said. Its key 7 and 9 divisions have moved towards the Indian border. The movement of the 7 division is crucial. This formation is meant to back up Pakistan's Army Reserve South (ARS) which along with the Army Reserve North (ARN) forms the core of the Pakistani military. In doing so, this division can ``free'' the ARS to move either towards the east in the direction of the Rann of Kutch area in Gujarat or towards Rajasthan or Punjab in the north.
As of now, the ARS has not been moved from its location on the west bank of the Indus river.
Pakistan's 9 division that has been moved out of the Afghan border is expected to beef up the ARN positioned in the corridor between Jhelum and Chenab and is currently facing Akhnoor in the Jammu sector.
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