IAF chief briefs PM on readiness of air force

The chief of the air staff, Air Chief Marshal AP Singh, on Sunday met Prime Minister Narendra Modi and is understood to have briefed him on the security developments unfolding in the region and the air force’s operational readiness against the backdrop of the Pahalgam terror strike, people aware of the matter said.

The meeting came on a day defence minister Rajnath Singh pledged a crushing response to those who threaten the country’s security, amid growing tensions between India and Pakistan.

Navy chief Admiral Dinesh K Tripathi briefed the PM on Saturday.

The two meetings came at a critical moment as Modi has granted the military a free hand to respond forcefully to the Pahalgam terror attack that killed 26 people and underlined that the armed forces have complete operational freedom to choose “the mode, targets, and timing of the response”.

“The two chiefs would have probably updated the PM on what the actual situation is following the Pahalgam terror attack, how things are moving, and the military’s state of readiness to respond,” said Air Chief Marshal Fali Homi Major, a former IAF chief.

On Sunday, the Pakistan Army ratcheted up tensions along the Line of Control (LoC) in Jammu and Kashmir for the tenth straight day by carrying out the most extensive ceasefire violations since the terror strike, officials aware of the matter said. The Indian Army’s counter-fire was measured but effective, they added.

In Delhi, Singh minced no words as he pledged a strong response under Modi’s leadership.

“As the defence minister, it is my responsibility to work with my soldiers and ensure the security of the country’s borders. It is also my responsibility to work with the armed forces and give a crushing reply to those who threaten India,” he said.

People know the PM well and are familiar with his working style, determination and the way he has learned to take risks in his life, the defence minister said.

“I want to assure you that under Prime Minister Modi’s leadership, what you want will certainly happen,” Singh added.

He will not attend Russia’s Victory Day parade in Moscow on May 9 to mark the 80th anniversary of the win over Germany in World War II in light of the escalation of hostilities. Singh’s deputy, the minister of state for defence, Sanjay Seth, may represent India.

The Pakistan Army on Sunday fired at scores of Indian posts along the LoC in sectors including Kupwara, Baramulla, Poonch, Rajouri, Mendhar, Naushera, Sunderbani, and Akhnoor; the maximum number of areas it has targeted on a single day since the Pahalgam terror attack, the officials said.

The repeated violations are being seen as a deliberate attempt by Pakistan to step up hostilities along the LoC where it has also rushed reinforcements to bolster its posture.

The latest ceasefire breach came a day after the Pakistani military conducted a launch of the Abdali surface-to-surface ballistic missile with a range of 450 km. It is a land-based tactical ballistic missile that is already in service with Pakistan’s strategic forces.

Pakistan has moved Chinese-origin SH-15 howitzers it began inducting three years ago, closer to the de facto border and redeployed some army elements from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa to the LoC.

The neighbouring army, which has repeatedly targeted Indian posts after the Pahalgam terror attack, on April 30 opened fire across the international border (IB) for the first time since the strike in a brazen attempt to escalate hostilities. Pakistani soldiers had then fired at Indian positions along the IB in the Pargwal sector near Jammu, and along the LoC in sectors including Akhnoor, Naushera, Sunderbani, Baramulla, and Kupwara, seeking to open a wider front to engage the Indian Army.

The repeated targeting of Indian posts has sparked the most extensive cross-border exchange since the 2021 ceasefire.

The Pakistan military was on April 29 warned against the unprovoked firings along the LoC when a brigadier from the Indian Army’s directorate general of military operations spoke to his Pakistani counterpart over the hotline. The pattern of violations has, however, only expanded.

Pakistani troops violated the February 2021 ceasefire agreement around 15 times between January and early April 2025. Unlike isolated, brief exchanges that were quickly resolved through established channels, the current pattern involves simultaneous salvos at multiple points and has persisted with increasing frequency after the Pahalgam terror attack. The two armies had earlier agreed to a ceasefire in November 2003, but it was often violated by the Pakistani side.

Since the April 22 attack, India has unveiled several punitive measures, banning the import of goods originating in Pakistan, prohibiting Pakistan-flagged vessels from docking at Indian ports, shutting its airspace to aircraft registered in or operated by that country, suspending the 1960 Indus Waters Treaty, downgrading bilateral ties, expelling most Pakistani citizens in India, and shutting down the only operational land border crossing at Attari.

Pakistan has also unveiled tit-for-tat reactions to punitive measures announced by India, but neither side has thus far indicated its intent to abandon the ceasefire. It has closed its airspace to Indian airlines, suspended all trade with India, and has threatened to suspend bilateral pacts such as the Simla Agreement.

India’s political leadership has pledged a muscular response.

Modi earlier said India will pursue terrorists to the ends of the earth, while Singh talked about punishing not only those who carried out the horrific attack but also their handlers --- interpreted as a stern warning to Pakistan.