Stressing that modern wars are "not won by guns and bullets", Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Sunday called the logistics management by various agencies the deciding factor in the success of Operation Sindoor. He made the remarks while virtually addressing a gathering at the 3rd convocation ceremony of Gati Shakti Vishwavidyalaya in Gujarat's Vadodara.
In his address, Rajnath said that the handling of logistics decides a country's fate in modern warfare. But logistics doesn't mean just the delivering of goods, and must be considered a strategically important sector, he stressed.
"The speed at which the world is changing is both impressive and shocking. The defence sector is also transforming, and major changes are being witnessed in the methods of warfare. In today's era, wars are not won by guns and bullets alone, but by their time-bound delivery," he said.
"Logistics management was a deciding factor in the success of Operation Sindoor. The way various agencies managed logistics right from mobilisation of our armed forces to delivering the required material at the right place at the right time has proved to be a deciding factor in the success of the operation," he added.
A modern war without logistics will become a confusion zone, said Rajnath, while adding that the country's borders will be stronger only if it has stronger logistics. Whether it is a war, a national disaster or a pandemic, it has become important for a country to keep its logistic support chain "stable, secure and capable", the Defence Minister said.
For the Army, Rajnath said, logistics mean the timely delivery of weapons, fuel, rations and medicines, but for the Navy, it means that one should ensure that spare parts and other equipment are available to the ships in time.
"And, it is important for our Air Force to ensure that the jets continue their flights without any hindrance with the help of ground support and uninterrupted fuel supply. Just imagine, if we have advanced missile systems but the electronics needed to launch them don't arrive in time, then that technology is of no use," he said.
He also spoke about the PM Gati Shakti' initiative and called it an extension of the idea of logistics integration.
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