Operation Sindoor was unlike any conventional mission: Army chief

Army Chief Gen Upendra Dwivedi described Operation Sindoor as a “grey zone” mission akin to a strategic chess game, emphasizing unpredictable enemy moves and precision strikes on terror infrastructure in Pakistan following the Pahalgam attack in May 2025.

Chennai: Army Chief Gen Upendra Dwivedi asserted that Operation Sindoor was unlike any conventional mission and that it was akin to playing a game of chess as “we did not know” what would be the enemy’s next move.

In his address at a function at IIT-Madras, he recalled the intricacies of India’s decisive military action in May on terror infrastructure in retaliation for the April 22 Pahalgam attack.

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Using the metaphor of the chess game, Gen Dwivedi said, “In Operation Sindoor what we did, we played chess. So, what does it mean? It means, we did not know what is the next move, the enemy is going to take, and what we are going to do. This is something, we call.. the grey zone. Grey zone is that we are not going for the conventional operations. But, we are doing something, just short of a conventional operation.”

“Conventional operation means, go with everything, take everything you have. And, if you are able to come back, otherwise, stay there. That is called the conventional approach. Here, the grey zone means any activity that is taking place in all domains, that is something we are talking about and Operation Sindoor taught us that this is the grey zone,” he said.

“So, we were making the chess moves, and he (enemy) was also making the chess moves. Somewhere we were giving him the checkmate and somewhere we were going in for the kill at the risk of losing our own, but that’s the way, life is all about,” the Army chief said.

Under Operation Sindoor in May, the IAF carried out precision strikes on multiple targets in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir linked to terror groups.

The operation was aimed at destroying terror infrastructure and neutralising key operatives in wake of the Pahalgam attack.