The handing over of the baton comes on a happy note in the Indian Army.
The new chief’s early rural background lends a charming dimension, as the controversies over his succession lie forgotten.
That’s as it should be. While Gen. Dalbir Singh Suhag has his task cut out at a critical time in India-Pakistan ties, with a new government in New Delhi, what outgoing chief Gen. Bikram Singh said about contrasting situations on the Chinese and Pakistan borders was revealing.
Gen. Singh’s farewell remarks about India giving a “befitting reply” to Pakistan over an Indian soldier’s beheading last year reflects the fragile psychological state of troops on the ground at the LoC.
In contrast comes the more positive outlook on the India-China border which, according to Gen. Singh, is covered not only by “robust mechanisms” at the micro level but also broader understanding at the macro level.
The sense of realism about ground-level ties on the China border is what sets the two issues apart.
There is no room for conflicts in the scenario presented by the outgoing chief on the China border.
The same kind of ground mechanisms exist with Pakistan too, but the basic distrust governing India-Pakistan ties make it a different ballgame altogether.
It helps that India’s far larger trade with China lends solidity, and comfort levels are higher on the ground too.
The government should consider all these factors while enunciating its Pakistan policy.
