Union Minister of State for Defence Shripad Yesso Naik on Friday said India was capable of dealing with any situation after Punjab government claimed that drones were being used to smuggle arms and ammunition from across the border from Pakistan, PTI reported.

The minister made these comments on the sidelines of India Defence and Security Expo 2019 at the Indian Institute of Technology in Delhi.

“India is capable of dealing with it and there is no issue of concern,” Naik said. “The Indian Army has emerged stronger after fighting terrorism.”

A recent Punjab Police investigation revealed that GPS-equipped drones from Pakistan were flown to India to airdrop several caches of arms, ammunition and fake currency. Police officials said it was the first time the use of drones was detected.

Meanwhile, the Army and Border Security Force are on high alert and have asked security officials to maintain the highest possible vigilance along the International Border and the Line of Control.

“It is a new modus operandi of Pakistan to smuggle arms, ammunition and explosives in India for triggering terror,” BSF officials told PTI. “We have activated our forces to keep a hawk’s eye on movement of drones along the IB.”

On Tuesday, Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh had urged Union Home Minister Amit Shah to tackle the problem at the earliest, pointing out that the incident showed a new and serious dimension to “Pakistan’s sinister designs in the aftermath of the abrogation of Article 370”.

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