'Preventing spillover of Taliban ideology challenge for India'

JAMMU: Asserting that the nation faces threat in the eventuality of US troops' withdrawal from Afghanistan, a senior Army official has said India's "immense" challenge lies in preventing the "spillover" of Taliban ideology and the resultant violence, especially in Jammu and Kashmir.

"Our challenge lies in preventing the spillover of Taliban ideology and the resultant violence into our country, especially in J&K. The challenge is immense, but not insurmountable," General Officer Commanding, 16 Corps, Lt Gen A S Nandal said at a seminar at Jammu University here.

"By employing skillful diplomacy and other means available to state we can overcome this challenge," he said.

There is an increasing realisation amongst the world community today that dealing with terrorism is an extremely complex process and there are no quick fix solutions, Nandal said.

The official said India's strategic vision for Afghanistan is based on belief that economic and human resource development is the best way to deal with "myopic ideologies which are trying to push mankind back to medieval times".

"It is heartening to see that most countries in the world, including a bulk of our neighbours, today agree with our vision and policies," he said.

The two-day seminar on 'Afghanistan Dynamics: Impact on Regional and Strategic Environment' was jointly conducted by the Department of Strategic and Regional Studies, University of Jammu and White Knight Corps.