Army worried over mobile signal spillover from Pakistan

Expressing concern over mobile signal spillover from Pakistan in the border areas of Western Rajasthan, newly-appointed South-Western Army Commander Lieutenant General Arun Kumar Sahni said the issue will be addressed in coordination with other agencies engaged in border guarding.

Lieutenant General Sahni, who assumed the Command of South Western Command on Tuesday, said that being close to the India-Pakistan border, the command is operationally prepared to meet any challenge.

"We are sharing boundaries (in western sector) with Pakistan, and activities in Pakistan or in Afghanistan may have their impact here, but our force is always operationally prepared," he said after laying a wreath at the Amar Jawan Jyoti war memorial in Jaipur.

Areas adjoining Indo-Pak border in Western Rajasthan are reported to be getting signals from Pakistan-based mobile service providers.

The signals of mobile towers located in Pakistan have been detected in Sam, Nachna, Mohangarh and other areas close to the border, raising the possibility of the network being used by intruders or miscreants.

Lieutenant General Sahni said that further validation of network centric warfare skills as well as enhancement of Pokhran and Mahajan field firing ranges and other training facilities will be among other key focus areas of the South-Western command.

"Rajasthan is the test-bed for network centric system and we will further validate the system. The command will maintain high standards and training facilities will be improved. Pokran and Mahajan are two important ranges here which will be further enhanced and upgraded," Sahni told reporters.

Lieutenant General Sahni, who was the director general of information technology in the army headquarters before taking over the new posting, was commissioned into the Regiment of Artillery in 1976, according to defence spokesperson S D Goswami.

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