Defence minister A K Antony visits Kupwara sector

Defence minister A K Antony on Sunday visited a forward post in north Kashmir's Kupwara sector.

He was accompanied by the chief of army staff General Bikram Singh, defence secretary, Shashi Kant Sharma, northern army commander, Lt Gen K T Parnaik and other senior military and civil officials.

A defence spokesman in a statement said that Antony was briefed about the infiltration pattern of militants in the sector and the measures being taken by the army to prevent such attempts.

"Antony spent some time with the troops and asked about their welfare. He asked them about the quality of rations, clothing and shoes they were getting and whether they were satisfied with it," the statement said.

"The ministry of defence has taken several measures in the last few years to improve the quality of supplies to the jawans posted in remote locations."

The defence minister while addressing a joint security review meeting on Saturday said, "In a democratic set up, like ours, there can be no justification for the violation of human rights."

He also said that 'efforts should be made to reduce the visibility of the armed forces as much as possible without compromising efficacy'.