Director General Military Operations (DGMO) Lt Gen Rajiv Ghai disclosed on Tuesday that the Indian Navy was fully prepared and in action during Operation Sindoor, with potential consequences for Pakistan had it chosen to escalate the conflict. Speaking at the United Nations Troop Contributing Countries' (UNTCC) Chiefs' Conclave, Lt Gen Ghai revealed that the Navy had sailed into the Arabian Sea, ready to strike if necessary when Pakistan requested a cessation of hostilities.
Operation Sindoor was launched on May 7, 2025, in response to a terrorist attack on April 22, 2025, in Pahalgam, India, where 26 civilians were killed. The Indian government attributed the attack to the Pakistan-based terrorist group, The Resistance Front (TRF), an offshoot of Lashkar-e-Taiba. India responded by targeting nine terror sites across Pakistani-administered Kashmir and Pakistan's Punjab province. India maintained that the strikes focused on terrorist infrastructure, avoiding military or civilian targets. Pakistan, however, claimed that the strikes hit civilian areas, resulting in casualties.
Lt Gen Ghai detailed India's precision strikes on terror hubs, including Muridke and Bahawalpur, stating that 11 air bases were hit, damaging eight, along with the destruction of several aircraft. He indicated that Pakistan suffered significant casualties on the Line of Control (LoC), estimating over 100 deaths based on posthumous awards.
Following India's strikes, Pakistan allegedly initiated retaliatory drone and UCAV attacks targeting key Indian airbases and logistics infrastructure which were effectively neutralized by India’s air defense systems. Lt Gen Ghai characterized Pakistan's drone attacks against India as a "dismal failure". He noted that these attacks occurred even after discussions between the two countries' DGMOs, prompting the Indian Air Force to conduct precision strikes on Pakistani installations on the night of May 9-10. These strikes reportedly damaged eight air bases, three hangars, and four radars, and destroyed Pakistani air assets on the ground.
Lt Gen Ghai emphasized that India was "four or five steps ahead" of Pakistan, anticipating their response and preparing accordingly. He dismissed suggestions that India was unprepared for potential escalation, asserting that the army had war-gamed several steps ahead. He stated that India's intent was not to escalate the conflict but to respond decisively to terrorism. India and Pakistan reached a ceasefire agreement on May 10.
Operation Sindoor has also showcased India's indigenous defense capabilities, attracting international interest in acquiring Indian long-range systems and counter-drone capabilities. The operation demonstrated the effectiveness of domestically developed weapons in real-time combat, bolstering India's ambition to become a major defense exporter. The BrahMos supersonic cruise missile made its debut during the operation, with the Indian Air Force conducting coordinated precision strikes on Pakistani airbases. The indigenously developed Akash surface-to-air missile defense system also proved effective in countering Pakistani drone attacks.
