Defence Minister Rajnath Singh has assured the armed forces that the government is doing all that is required to maintain their morale high and meet the Operational Requirement. He said, the country’s forces are at the forefront in the defence of the nation. In his address on the eve of 74th Independence Day celebrations, Mr Singh said, history is a witness to the fact that India has never attacked anywhere and anytime to capture the land of another country.

 He said, India believes in winning hearts and  not land. He said, but it  does not mean that we will allow our self-respect to come down and whatever we do in the realm of national security, we always do it for self-defence and not for attacking others. The Defence Minister said, if any enemy country attacks on India, then it will be given a befitting reply.

 
Mr Singh said, Indian Air Force was lacking of modern combat aircraft for a long time and as soon as the Prime Minister Narendra Modi led government took over, it started procurement of 36 Rafale fighter aircraft from France through agreement. Mr Singh said five Rafale aircraft have already arrived at Ambala air base two weeks ago and the remaining aircrafts will also arrive soon.

 
The Defence Minister said, DRDO in collaboration with the Home Ministry, Health  Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Armed Forces and  other industry groups built the Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel Covid Hospital in New Delhi in a record time of 12 days.
 

He said, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has always supported the idea of permanent commission for women and also announced this  during his Independence Day speech in 2018. He said, Defence Ministry has issued formal government approval letter on 23 July to provide permanent commission to women officers in the Indian Army and thus paving the way for empowering women officers to discharge big roles in the organization.
 

The Defence Minister also paid tributes to Indian Soldiers who sacrificed their lives in Galwan valley in Ladakh and assured their family members that the whole country is standing with them. On the occasion of Independence Day, Mr Singh also extended his greetings to the armed forces personnel.