Indian armed forces is the 2nd largest in world: Banwarilal Purohit

Addressing the people of the state through All India Radio and Doordarshan on the occasion of Armed Forces Flag Day, he said the Day was being observed to salute the valuable contribution of the armed forces and remember with pride the selfless service rendered by them in defending the territorial integrity of the nation.

He said the Indian Armed Forces have a combined strength of nearly 15 lakhs making it the second largest military force in the world.

The victories recorded by India in the several wars fought after Independence have brought pride and glory to the armed forces, who were always held in respect and high esteem by the people of India.

Several valiant soldiers have laid down their lives in the service of the nation in these wars, he said, adding, "it is our duty to recall those supreme sacrifices on this historic day".

Mr Banwarilal Purohit said "apart from guarding our borders, the armed forces also assist the State and Central Governments in calamity relief operations. Their contribution in the task of rescuing the marooned and the suffering in times of natural calamities are known to each one of us".

Pointing out that the union government allocates a substantial portion of the budget for modernisation and upkeep of the Armed Forces, the Governor said new technologies and new strategies were being continuously introduced to keep the fighting forces in fine trim.

The "Joint Doctrine Indian Armed Forces-2017" which aims to bring the Indian Army, Navy and Air Force to plan and work together to meet the emerging challenges is one such initiative", he added.

The Centre's 'Make in India' initiative to indigenise manufacturing and reduce dependence on defence imports, would make the armed forces more self-reliant.

Lauding the State Government for implementing a number of schemes for the benefit of families of ex-servicemen, Mr Purohit said Tamil Nadu was one of the few States which has a successful re-employment model implemented through the TN Ex-Servicemen's Corporation (TEXCO) for registration and employment in Government and Public Sector undertakings on contract basis.

He said TEXCO supports nearly 9,000 ex-Servicemen and has created Special Brigades such as Tourism Security, Warden Forces for tourism and anti power theft squad for TANGEDCO.

Tamil Nadu is also the topper in availing the Prime Minister's Merit Scholarships for the wards of Ex-Servicemen.

"So far this year 1,053 children of Ex-Servicemen from Tamil Nadu have secured this coveted scholarship, which is one-fifth of the total scholarships being provided in India", the Governor said, adding, Tamil Nadu has the distinction of bagging the maximum number of scholarships in the entire country since the inception of the Prime Minister's Merit Scholarship Scheme.

Congratulating the people for making Tamil Nadu win the National Trophy for the highest Per Capita Collections for the Flag Day Fund continuously for the last 13 years, he also lauded the Government and the people of the state for being in the forefront in looking after the welfare of ex-Servicemen and their families.