Centre deploys MARCOS in eastern Ladakh as part of tri-service operation

The Central Government has deployed Indian Navy's Marine Commandos (MARCOS) in the Pangong lake area in eastern Ladakh. Earlier, the Centre had also stationed Indian Air Forces Garud Commandos and Indian Army Para Special Forces in the conflict zone more than six months ago.

MARCOS have been deployed to enhance the integration of the three services as well as to provide naval commandos exposure to extreme cold weather conditions of Eastern Ladakh, government sources told India Today TV.

The MARCOS personnel along with existing infrastructure are going to get new boats for operation in Pangong lake. Indian Army's Special Forces including the Cabinet Secretariat's Special Frontier Force and the Para Special Forces, have been carrying out special operations in the region for a long time.

In the early days of the conflict, the Indian Air Forces Garud Special Forces along with their Igla shoulder-fired air defence systems, had moved to hilltops on strategic heights along the LAC (line of actual control) to take out any enemy aircraft attempting to violate Indian air space. Special troops belonging to both the Army and the Air Force have been up in the hilltops for more than six months now.

On August 29-30, the Indian forces occupied strategic heights along the LAC to stop the People's Army of China from doing the same. The PLA has special troops stationed on their side of the LAC.

The Indian Navy has also deployed several MARCOS teams to the Wular lake area of Jammu and Kashmir in order to tackle terrorism in the region. The Indian Air Force started stationing Garuds in Kashmir valley soon after the 2016 Pathankot attack in order to give the troops a sense of real operations, according to plans of then Army Chief Gen. Bipin Rawat.

Soon after their deployment, Garuds earned one Ashok Chakra and three Shaurya Chakra for their operations in the region, including eliminating a band of terrorists led by the nephew of 26/11 terrorist Zaki Ur Rehman Lakhvi. Since then, the Air Force has been regularly sending Garud units for forwarding deployment in the Kashmir Valley.

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