New Delhi [India], January 14 : Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed gratitude to veterans on the occasion of Armed Forces Veterans Day and said that they are heroes and enduring symbols of patriotism.
PM Modi also said that Veterans' sacrifice, courage and unwavering commitment to duty are exemplary.
"On Armed Forces Veterans Day, we express gratitude to the brave women and men who dedicated their lives to safeguarding our nation. Their sacrifices, courage and unwavering commitment to duty are exemplary. Our Veterans are heroes and enduring symbols of patriotism," PM Modi wrote on X.
He reaffirmed that the NDA-led government will continue to work for the welfare of veterans.
"Ours is a Government that has always worked for the welfare of veterans and we will keep doing so in the times to come," PM Modi wrote.
Earlier in the day, Union Defence Minister Rajnath Singh attended the 9th Armed Veterans' Day event in Akhnoor Jammu and Kashmir, where he hoisted a 108-foot national flag and inaugurated a heritage museum.
Speaking at the event, Rajnath Singh said that Jammu and Kashmir is incomplete without Pakistan Occupied Kashmir and warned the neighbouring country against terrorist training camps there.
"Jammu and Kashmir is incomplete without PoK. PoK is nothing more than a foreign territory for Pakistan... PoK's land is being used to run the business of terrorism. Terrorist training camps are being run in PoK... Pakistan will have to destroy them otherwise," Rajnath Singh said while speaking at the 9th Armed Forces Veterans' Day event here.
Addressing the event, Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah said veterans are the people who gave everything for the sake of the country.
"You are the people who gave everything for the sake of the country... who didn't worry about their future or lives and were ready to sacrifice and did for the protection of the country... It is now our duty to serve you... it is our duty to pay back by ensuring you live comfortably," he said.
Armed Forces Veterans' Day is celebrated on 14th January every year to recognise the service rendered by the First Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces Field Marshal KM Cariappa, who retired on this day in 1953. The day was first celebrated in 2016 and it is commemorated every year since by hosting such interactive events in honour of the Ex-Servicemen.