Bipin Rawat wants curbs on social media

Army Chief General Bipin Rawat urged for the need to regulate social media in a bid to control activities of terrorist organisations as they often use the internet for spreading propaganda.

Speaking on Wednesday at the Raisina Dialogue — a three-day geo-political conference — Gen Rawat said that in a democratic country this might not be appreciated, but said "temporary curbs" to ensure a safe environment are required.

This is not the first time the Army chief has spoken about the ills of social media and the internet. During his annual press conference last week, he had said that a lot of damage is being done through social media and warned against cyberwarfare.

Amid reports about China carrying out some infrastructure development in the disputed region near Doklam — where Indian and Chinese Armies were involved in a 73-day face-off last year — Rawat said the Army does not visualise any 'serious trouble' post-Doklam.

He said the number of Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) soldiers in the North Doklam area were not the same as they were at the time of the stand-off.

"They have carried out some infrastructure development; most of it is temporary in nature," Rawat said while responding to a question on Facebook Live, posted by the Observer Research Foundation (ORF).

Without naming Pakistan, he said nations that support terror need to be dealt with.

Speaking about terror activities, he said all terror outfits have a militant and a political front, and to deal with the menace of terrorism, both need to be addressed simultaneously.