Prime Minister Narendra Modi today arrived in Rajouri district of Jammu and Kashmir to celebrate Diwali with Army troops guarding the Line of Control (LoC).

The Prime Minister’s visit coincided with Infantry Day celebrations, which is observed to mark the landing of the first Indian troops in Jammu and Kashmir in 1947 to push back Pakistan supported intruders.

Accompanied by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and Army Chief General Bipin Rawat, the Prime Minister directly flew to the Army Brigade Headquarters in the border district to interact with the troops deployed along the LoC.

This is the third time that the Prime Minister is visiting Jammu and Kashmir to celebrate Diwali with the troops in the border state since 2014, and first after the abrogation of Article 370 provisions.

The Prime Minister has been regularly interacting with troops serving in tough terrains on Diwali soon after taking over as the Prime Minister in 2014 when he had spent his Diwali at Siachen in Ladakh region with the Jawans.

Earlier in his Man Ki Baat address today, PM Modi hailed the contribution of Indian soldiers serving in the highest battlefield of the world Siachen.

The Prime Minister said, in Siachen, the highest battlefield in the world, Indian soldiers are not only protecting the borders but also running a Swacch Siachen campaign.