215 recruits join Army

Tribune News Service

Srinagar, August 20

The chairman of Chiefs of Staff Committee, Lt Gen Satish Dua, on Monday said thousands of Kashmiri youths want to join the Army.

In all, 215 recruits from the state joined the Jammu and Kashmir Light Infantry (JAKLI) Regiment on Monday. The passing-out parade was reviewed by Lt Gen Satish Dua at the JAKLI Regimental Centre in Rangreth on the outskirts of Srinagar.

Lt General Dua said not all were alienated in Kashmir and the youths were coming in large numbers for the Army recruitment rallies. He hoped that the misguided youth would get back to the mainstream soon.

“It is true that some of our children have been misguided and are on a wrong path. We hope that they will get back to the mainstream soon,” Lt General Dua told reporters after the function. “But this is just once facet of the state youth. If everybody is alienated then why do we have large number of J&K youths attending the Army recruitment rallies? Thousands of J&K youths want to join the Army. So, we must understand that there are some misguided elements but then there are some youth who have patriotic sentiments too,” he added.

Lt Gen Dua said this summer, there had been an overall improvement in the situation.

“Be it the incidents, terrorist encounters, stone-throwing — things are under control as compared to the previous years,” he added.