India has the capacity to strike any target within Pakistan: Army

In a significant assertion of India’s military capabilities, Lieutenant General Sumer Ivan D’Cunha, Director General of Army Air Defence, declared that India possesses the capacity to strike any target within Pakistan’s territory. Speaking to ANI, Lt Gen D’Cunha emphasised that even if Pakistan were to relocate its army headquarters from Rawalpindi to regions like Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, they would still remain within India’s operational reach. He stated in an interview, “The whole of Pakistan is within range,” underscoring India’s comprehensive preparedness to respond to threats across the entire depth of Pakistani territory.

This statement comes in the wake of Operation Sindoor, the four-day offensive that involved precision strikes using loitering munitions and advanced drones to target key Pakistani airbases and terrorist infrastructure, including locations in Rawalpindi and Lahore.

Lt Gen D’Cunha put the spotlight on the use of indigenous technology, “India has an adequate arsenal of weapons to take on Pakistan right across its depth.”

He also spoke about Indian army’s priorities. “Our job is to protect our sovereignty, our people… So, I think that the very fact that we have been able to protect our motherland from this onslaught, which was aimed at causing a lot of problems in population centers and in our cantonments, the very fact that we have given this reassurance to our people, not only to our civil population… a lot of our own jawans, officers, wives were staying in cantonments. And they were also equally concerned about these drone attacks. And the very fact that we ensured that this did not manifest in any casualties, I am sure it not only made the soldier feel proud, it made the families feel proud. And finally, the population of India feel proud. I think that’s the takeaway.”

Meanwhile, India’s stress on self-reliance has strengthen not only its military prowess but also its exports. Indian defence exports now span a broad spectrum, ranging from arms, ammunition, and fuses to complete weapon systems. Indian firms are exporting advanced platforms such as the BrahMos supersonic cruise missile, artillery guns, Dornier-228 aircraft, radars, Akash air defence missiles, Pinaka rocket systems, and various armoured vehicles.

Besides, defence PSUs form the backbone of Indian exports and military capabilities thanks to smart policy initiatives.

As of now, more than 100 Indian firms are exporting defence products from India, according to official statistics. Major buy­ers include Italy, the Maldives, Russia, Sri Lanka, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), the Philippines, Saudi Arabia, Poland, Egypt, Israel, Spain, Chile, and others. As they say, the proof of the pud­ding lies in the eating: defence exports have seen a significant growth, rising from ₹686 crore in 2013–14 to ₹21,083 crore in 2023–24. And the Centre expects defence exports to reach ₹50,000 crore and annual defence production to hit ₹3 lakh crore by the 2028–29 financial year. Defence production already crossed the ₹1 lakh crore mark in 2023–24.

2025 India-Pakistan warIndian ArmyLt Gen D'Cunhamilitary capacityOperation Sindoor