'Operation Sindoor continues, preparedness has to be very high,' says CDS Chauhan; claims 'there are no runners up in war'

NEW DELHI: Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) Anil Chauhan on Friday reiterated the government's stand that Operation Sindoor , which began to avenge the Pahalgam attack , is continuing.

"As I said earlier, there are no runners up in war, and giving examples of Operation Sindoor, which still continues; our preparedness level has to be very high," CDS Chauhan said.

In his address at a defence seminar hosted at Subroto Park here, he also said the military in future will also need "information warriors, technology warriors and scholar warriors."

And, in a merging landscape of warfare, a future soldier will need to be a mix of all three "info, tech and scholar warriors," the CDS said, according to news agency PTI.

The seminar on 'Aerospace Power: Preserving India's Sovereignty and Furthering National Interests' was held under the aegis of the 'No.4 Warfare and Aerospace Strategy Programme'.

The CDS said there are no runners-up in a war, and any military must be constantly alert and maintain a high degree of operational preparedness.

"An example is Operation Sindoor, which still continues. Our preparedness level has to be very high, 24x7, 365 days (a year)," Gen Chauhan said.

Major Air Force drill under way in Rajasthan

The Chief of Defence Staff’s remarks come even as the Indian Air Force (IAF) is in the midst of a large-scale air exercise across the border districts of Rajasthan, aimed at testing its operational readiness and strategic capabilities.

The three-day exercise, which kicked off on Wednesday and runs through Friday, is being held in Jaisalmer, Barmer, and Jodhpur -- all located near the India-Pakistan border. A Notice to Airmen (NOTAM) has been issued for the region, restricting civilian air traffic between Jaisalmer and Jodhpur to ensure uninterrupted military operations.

Fighter jets, including the Rafale, Sukhoi-30MKI, Mirage 2000, and Jaguar, are carrying out day and night sorties, engaging aerial targets and simulating precision ground strikes. Residents in the region have reported hearing the roar of fighter jets, particularly during nighttime drills.

Sources have said the exercise is being coordinated from key airbases at Jodhpur and Uttarlai (Barmer), with sorties extensively covering the Pokhran Field Firing Range in Jaisalmer. The restricted airspace under NOTAM also allows the IAF to deploy drones, missiles, and other aerial platforms without interference from civilian flights, enabling realistic and high-risk training scenarios.

What happened during Operation Sindoor?

India’s Operation Sindoor, launched just past midnight on May 7, marked its most assertive military response yet to cross-border terrorism.

Triggered by the Pahalgam massacre - where tourists were targeted in a brutal execution-style killing - the Indian military executed coordinated strikes deep inside Pakistan, hitting high-value terrorist infrastructure.

The response was swift, multi-domain, and precise. India used stand-off weapons, including air-launched cruise missiles , loitering munitions, and long-range drones, to hit nine locations across Pakistan - including Muridke and Bahawalpur, the symbolic and operational hubs of Lashkar-e-Taiba and Jaish-e-Mohammed .