New Delhi: In line with Prime Minister Narendra Modi's gesture of celebrating Diwali with troops in forward areas, the top defence brass of the country is also celebrating the festival with troops in different locations across the country. Chief of Defence Staff Gen Anil Chauhan is celebrating Diwali with troops deployed in the Andaman and Nicobar Command in Port Blair and took part in festivities there. Indian Army chief Gen Upendra Dwivedi will be celebrating Diwali with troops in Arunachal Pradesh and has already reached there with the Defence Minister. Navy Chief Admiral Dinesh Tripathi is celebrating the festival with naval troops at Porbandar in Gujarat which sees a lot of action related to nefarious activities from the Pakistan side and smuggling of contraband. Indian Air Force chief Air Chief Marshal AP Singh would be celebrating the festival with troops in the Jammu and Kashmir sector. While the PM has been celebrating Diwali with troops in the forward locations, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh started the trend of doing shastra pooja or worship of arms with troops on the occasion of Dussehra. He started it soon after taking over as Defence Minister in 2019 when he went to France to get the first Rafale for the Indian Air Force. A number of senior officers including the Army chief also spent the Dusshera with troops in Sikkim and West Bengal.
