By IANS
New Delhi : Visitors to the India International Trade Fair-2007 (IITF-2007) beginning here Wednesday will get a vivid account of the multifarious activities of the Indian armed forces in the northeast over the past six decades to stamp out militancy and bring the region into the national mainstream.
“Every year, we choose a different region to showcase and this year, it is the northeastern region on the theme ‘Defenders of the Dawn’ because that is where the sun’s rays first rise on the country,” Indian Army vice chief, Lt. Gen. Milan Lalitkumar Naidu, told reporters here Monday.
“Toward this, the defence ministry pavilion at the fair will portray the valour, courage and indomitable human spirit displayed by the Indian armed forces in the northeast in the last 60 years,” Naidu added.
According to the vice chief, the pavilion “will showcase the sincere efforts of the armed forces to help bring in a new paradigm in the region” and to take forward the government’s Look East policy.
The pavilion will be divided into nine sub-themes, among them “Defending the Borders” of 6,000 km along five nations, “Wars of the Eastern Theatre”, and “Taming the Terror” in putting down the scourge of militancy in the region.
The other sub-themes are “Aiding Prosperity” on the efforts made to improve the socio-economic condition of the people, “Border Roads Organisation” on improving road connectivity in the region, and “Sons of the Soil” on various aspects of the Assam Rifles and the Territorial.
There are also sub-themes on “Training” focusing on the activities of Counter-Insurgency and Jungle Warfare School (CIJWS) at Verangte in Mizoram, “Sports & Adventure” and the “Activities of AWWA, AFWWA and NWWA”, the wives’ associations of the army, navy and the air force personnel.
This apart, the defence pavilion will also feature live video-conferencing with soldiers guarding the eastern frontiers, live demonstrations by bomb disposal squads and a scintillating Army dog show.