Indian Airforce on high alert

a onblur=”try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}” href=”http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_RRbP6fpJWAc/ST9mmeij7kI/AAAAAAAAA1w/IZvEk2KxxzY/s1600-h/su-30MKI.jpg”img style=”margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 166px;” src=”http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_RRbP6fpJWAc/ST9mmeij7kI/AAAAAAAAA1w/IZvEk2KxxzY/s320/su-30MKI.jpg” alt=”" id=”BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5278050099520597570″ border=”0″ //aAfter the warning on possible air strikes on Indian soil, the armed forces, especially the air force and the navy, have been kept in a state of war readiness. There has been no massive mobilization of troops on the border, though.br /br /While Indian Air Force (IAF) fighters have been mounted with bombs and kept in a state of readiness to take off within minutes, almost the entire western naval fleet is aggressively patrolling the Arabian Sea.br /br /The military was moved into this state of heightened alert within 24 hours of the terror attack on Mumbai, which began on November 26. When it became clear that the terrorists were Pakistanis, the government ordered the mobilization.br /br /According to a source, the IAF has recalled senior officers from leave, moved some of its missile formations forward, and armed its fighters with missiles. Pilots have been put on standby in operational rooms.br /br /To justify the state of war readiness, the government spoke of the possibility of a 911-style attack on India. At a meeting with the three service chiefs, defence minister AK Antony cautioned them to take measures to thwart such an attack. But a source said the alert was a cover to justify India’s exceptional military mobilization.br /br /The forces have been put on high alert to back up India’s diplomatic efforts to get Pakistan to crack down on terrorists on its soil.br /br /The IAF says it is in state of “passive air defence (PAD)”, which means it is geared to take any measure to defend the country’s assets. Under PAD, all platforms, including fighters, are kept operationally ready, armed with missiles, and pilots are prepared to fly at a moment’s notice.br /br /During Operation Parakram, the air force was kept on “active air defence”, which means it was in a state of readiness to destroy enemy assets.br /br /The source said the IAF has reduced the number of personnel on leave to just 10% from the average 30% of its total strength and recalled several key officers from leave. In the western and southwestern air commands, which cover the Pakistani border, all leave has been canceled. The state of high alert extends to air stations in the South.br /br /According to the source, besides fully arming fighters and placing pilots in operational rooms, the IAF has moved some missile units close to the Pakistan border. These are primarily surface-to-air missiles and other air-defence assets that can shoot down any incoming threat.br /br /Meanwhile, the navy’s western command based in Mumbai has also been put on a state of high alert, with nearly two dozen warships patrolling the Arabian Sea.br /br /A source said that drawing from the experience of Operation Parakram, it was decided not to carry out massive troop movements on the border. The mobilization of ground forces, started after the 2001 attack, achieved little and was called off on October 16, 2002. This time the government has put in place a more “opaque” military mobilization.br /br /span style=”font-size:130%;”span style=”font-weight: bold;”"We are ready for war”- Pakistan’s Foreign Minister/span/span:a onblur=”try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}” href=”http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_RRbP6fpJWAc/ST9mtHcjAPI/AAAAAAAAA14/lCnHHx3sQfE/s1600-h/jf-17.jpg”img style=”margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 261px;” src=”http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_RRbP6fpJWAc/ST9mtHcjAPI/AAAAAAAAA14/lCnHHx3sQfE/s320/jf-17.jpg” alt=”" id=”BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5278050213580439794″ border=”0″ //abr /Pakistan’s Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi has indicated that his country is ready for war with India, if it’s imposed on them.br /br /”We do not want to impose war, but we are fully prepared in case war is imposed on us. We are not oblivious to our responsibilities to defend our homeland and it is a clear message. We want love and friendship, we want peace and stability in this region, but our peace mission should not be understood as the weakness of Pakistan,” Shah Mahmood Qureshi said.br /br /Quershi also ruled out handing over to India any of its citizens found to be linked to the Mumbai attacks and said that any Pakistani individual found to be involved in the incident will be tried under the country’s laws.br /br /”The arrests are being made for our own investigations. Even if allegations are proved against any suspect, he will not be handed over to India,” Qureshi was quoted as saying by PTI. “No arrested Pakistani would be handed over to India,” he said.br /br /Asked about the arrest of leaders and members of banned groups like Lashker-e-Toiba in a crackdown launched on Sunday, Qureshi said they were apprehended due to efforts made by intelligence agencies as part of the government’s commitment that Pakistan’s soil would not be used for terrorist activities directed against any other country.br /br /”We will proceed against those arrested under Pakistani laws,” he said.br /br /Qureshi said the government had made it clear that Pakistan was not involved in any way in the Mumbai attacks. Islamabad had also made an offer to jointly investigate the Mumbai attacks with India but had not yet received a response from the Indian side, he said.br /br /Ironically, Qureshi’s statement came in just after Pakistan’s Defence Minister, Chaudhry Ahmed Mukhtar assured that his government is willing to co-operate with India in terror investigations.br /br /”I think the offer of the Government of Pakistan that there should be a joint probe is a very good offer. If you want to probe somebody you should have evidence against those people and we still don’t have exact evidence because those people have died. A joint investigation will lead to better relations between the two countries. Our investigation team will come to India and sit with your people and will come out with findings. Thereafter you can start probing and asking questions,” Chaudhry Ahmed Mukhtar had told CNN-IBN in an exclusive interview on Tuesday.br /br /Mukhtar had also added that the present government was willing to discuss all issues with India.br /br /”Forget the past as there was no civilian government but President Asif Ali Zardari is willing to discuss and find solutions,” he said.