UGC has directed universities and higher educational institutions across the country to observe September 29 as "Surgical strike day".
The University Grants Commission (UGC) on Thursday directed varsities and higher educational institutions across the country to observe September 29 as "Surgical strike day".
This comes amid the Narendra Modi government's plan to celebrate the second anniversary of the 'surgical strikes' on September 29.
The commission has recommended that activities like talk-sessions by ex-servicemen about sacrifices by the armed forces, special parades, visit to exhibitions and sending greeting cards to pledge their support for armed forces should be conducted as part of the celebration.
"The NCC units of all universities should organise a special parade on September 29 after which the NCC commander shall address them on the modalities of protection of the borders. The varsities may organise a talk-session calling ex-servicemen to sensitise students about sacrifices made by the armed forces," the UGC said in a communication to all Vice Chancellors on Thursday.
"A multimedia exhibition will be organised around India Gate on September 29. Similar exhibitions may be organised in states, union territories, important towns and cantonments across the country. The institutions should encourage students and faculty members to visit these exhibitions," the letter added.
The commission has suggested that the students shall pledge their support for armed forces by writing letters and cards which may be produced in both digital and physical format.
"The letters and cards should be shared with PRO Defence and PIB for publicity across various media," the UGC said.
In the first such action, India carried out surgical strikes on September 29, 2016 on seven terror launch pads across the LoC with the Army saying its special forces inflicted "significant casualties" on terrorists preparing to infiltrate from Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK).
On Wednesday, Minister of Railways Piyush Goyal had said that the government will be "celebrating" the second anniversary of the surgical strikes. Goyal said that the 2016 strikes, which saw Indian Army commandos going into the Pakistani- occupied territory to neutralise terrorist launch pads, showed the world that we "mean business".
The surgical strikes on the intervening night of September 28 and 29, 2016 were launched in response to the attack on Uri military base attack carried out by Pakistan-based terrorists.
The operation was carried out by para commandos of the 4th and 9th battalions of the Indian Army and the terror launch pads targeted were in the range of 2 to 3 km from the Line of Control (LoC).
"Based on receiving specific and credible inputs that some terrorist teams had positioned themselves at launch pads along the Line of Control to carry out infiltration and conduct terrorist strikes inside Jammu and Kashmir and in various metros in other states, the Indian Army conducted surgical strikes at several of these launch pads to pre-empt infiltration by terrorists," the DGMO had said in a statement after the strike.
(With PTI inputs)
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