Army contingent received training in forest survival techniques, practised by the Malaysian Army

Mridul Kumar, Indian High Commissioner to Malaysia also visited the exercise contingents at the exercise area and complimented the troops on successful completion. The ceremony came to a close with the war cries of both the contingents and customary recital of prayers by the Malaysian Army.

THE joint military exercise of Indian and Malaysian armies concluded in the tropical rain forest of Hulu Langat in Malaysia on Friday, with both Army contingents taking home important lessons in counter-insurgency tactics in jungle terrain. A unit from Pune-headquartered Southern Command had also participated in the exercise.

As part of the Indo-Malaysian defence cooperation, the joint training exercise, called ‘Harimau Shakti’, was started in Malaysia on May 1. The two-week exercise was held in two halves: first half at Wardieburn Camp in Kuala Lumpur and later half in the forests of Sengai Perdik in Hulu Langat region in Malaysia. Officers and soldiers from 4 Grenadiers, a unit under the Southern Command, had represented India during the exercise.

The Indian contingent received training in forest survival techniques, practised by the Malaysian Army.

Colonel Aman Anand, Public Relations Officer of the the Indian Army, who was with contingent during the exercise, said, “The grand finale of the exercise was a practice tactical operation attack on enemy camp. The information collected over the past five days through various operations had resulted in the contingents identifying the movement, routes and activities of adversary and develop a coherent intelligence picture.”

He added, “The entire planning process was a true reflection of the joint operational capabilities that the contingents have achieved in a short span of time. Brigadier General Abdul Malik Bin Jiran, Commander of 12 Infantry Brigade of Malaysia, was given a review of the tactical situation by the Indian Contingent Commander. The final attack on the enemy target was witnessed by Brigadier General Abdul Malik Bin Jiran and Colonel Anirudh Chauhan, Defence Attache, Malaysia.”

Col Aman Anand added, “There were take home lessons for both the contingents. Indian unit could learn from the Malaysian unit’s expertise in jungle survival and ability to live off the land, good understanding of the operations in jungle terrain and excellent navigation skill in jungles, eye for ground and ability to use natural resources for operational and expertise in booby trap clearance and combat tracking.”

He added: “The Malaysian contingent could learn from the exceptional firing skills exhibited during cross training phase, innovation and ingenuity in conducting operations including security of operational bases, patrolling and ambush, tactical acumen in planning and executing operations in a joint operations environment, better understanding of the employment of improvised explosive devices (IEDs) and comprehensive knowledge of counter IED techniques exhibited by combat engineering team.”

Mridul Kumar, Indian High Commissioner to Malaysia also visited the exercise contingents at the exercise area and complimented the troops on successful completion. The ceremony came to a close with the war cries of both the contingents and customary recital of prayers by the Malaysian Army.