When on the night of May 6-7, 2025, India initiated Operation Sindoor, aimed at dismantling terrorist infrastructure in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir (PoJK), many people started living and sharing the life of the 1965 and 1971 war days. Although this was a strategic operation that lasted only four days, it brought back equal fear of two wars, forcing many families to temporarily shift out of J&K to other states. India responded only because of the brutal Pahalgam terror attack on April 22, 2025, where 26 lives were lost in Kashmir’s Baisaran Valley.
Named ‘Sindoor’ to honor the victims' widows, the operation symbolized India’s determination to fight cross-border terrorism effectively. Its objectives were to eliminate terrorist infrastructure, punish those responsible, and deter future attacks, reflecting a significant shift in India’s defence strategy. The Pahalgam attack was linked to The Resistance Front (TRF), affiliated with Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT). Groups such as LeT, Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM), and Hizbul Mujahideen have historically operated from Pakistan, targeting Indian civilians and security forces. Operation Sindoor aimed to disrupt these groups by striking nine critical terror sites—four in Pakistan’s Punjab province, including LeT’s base in Muridke and JeM’s stronghold in Bahawalpur, and five in PoJK, such as the Sawai Nala and Syedna Bilal camps in Muzaffarabad.
This operation became proof of India’s military capabilities because of deep strikes in Pakistan. Besides, this mission demonstrated highly effective tri-service coordination. The strikes successfully destroyed training camps and operational centres, reportedly eliminating over 100 militants, including high-profile targets like Abdul Rauf Azhar of JeM, associated with the 1999 IC-814 hijacking and the 2002 murder of journalist Daniel Pearl. Operation Sindoor was executed with a focused intent, sparing Pakistani civilian targets and averting a larger conflict between nuclear-armed nations.
Beyond military success, the operation imposed significant costs on Pakistan’s military-terrorist nexus. With this, India signaled its intolerance for terrorist sanctuaries, regardless of location, and asserted that Pakistan’s nuclear capabilities would not restrain India’s responses to terrorism. While this operation achieved its immediate aims of destruction and neutralization, heavy retaliatory shelling by Pakistan along the Line of Control resulted in casualties of thirteen civilians, and 59 others were injured. This situation stressed the balance India must always maintain to prevent extensive conflict.
Though Operation Sindoor reset deterrence and J&K Chief Minister Omar Abdullah announced plans to establish a memorial in honor of the 26 victims of last month’s tragic terror attack at Baisaran near Pahalgam, it may not resolve the underlying issue of terrorism, as recruits may fill the ranks of terrorist organizations. For this, steps should be taken to create long-term solutions by preventing radicalization, and permanent international cooperation to limit terror financing, to stop Pakistan from acting against India. Moreover, there should be no delay in announcing a memorial in honor of the victims of this four-day conflict in the Jammu region as well.
Operation Sindoor has enhanced India’s stance while achieving its initial objective of disrupting crucial pro-terror infrastructure. However, completely eradicating terrorism remains a challenge that requires persistent efforts beyond just military action. For this, the government’s move to send multi-party delegations across the world for communicating India’s perspective is a right beginning. As the world’s spotlight shifts toward India with this high-level diplomatic engagement, the time has come to ‘hit smart’ to prevent the loss of innocent lives in the border areas of Jammu.
