Modi to address Combined Commanders Conference today

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will address the Combined Commanders Conference (CCC) at Dehradun in Uttarakhand today. The day-long conference, to be hosted at the Indian Military Academy, will be attended by all Army commanders and their equivalents from the Air Force and the Navy. This will be the first CCC for the three military chiefs since taking over as head of their services last year.

Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar will be present at the conference, which is being organised outside Delhi for the second time after 2015. The last conference was conducted at INS Vikramaditya off the coast of Kochi on December 15, 2015.

The conference is likely to focus on the surgical strikes across the Line of Control, the prevailing



situation on the LoC, terrorism in Jammu and Kashmir and the emerging security situation.The Congress had objected to holding of the conference in Uttarakhand ahead of the assembly polls. Election Commission has given permission to Defence Ministry to hold the conference. However, the permission is subject to condition that the official visit of Prime Minister will not be combined with any public meeting.

Besides, no media briefing, media interaction, press release or announcement in connection with serving soldiers or ex-servicemen, which may affect the electorate in five poll bound states including Uttarakhand, will be made. The commission, in a letter to Defence Secretary, asked him to ensure compliance of its directions.