During the visit, Rajnath Singh would be accompanied by Army Chief General Bipin Rawat and other senior officials from the Defence Ministry. At the glacier, the Defence Minister will be briefed about the operations being conducted by the Army, along with the support of air effort by the IAF

New Delhi: Defence Minister Rajnath Singh is to visit the Siachen Glacier on Monday, on his first visit outside the national capital after taking office.

The visit to the world’s highest battle field is aimed at reviewing the security situation along the borders with Pakistan. The visit comes as ties between India and Pakistan remain tense following the 14 February Pulwama suicide terrorist attack in which 40 Indian security personnel were killed.

During the visit, the Defence Minister —who earlier held the home ministry portfolio during prime minister Narendra Modi’s first term in office —would be accompanied by Army Chief General Bipin Rawat and other senior officials from the Defence Ministry, the news reports said.

At the glacier, Singh will be briefed about the operations being conducted by the Army, along with the support of air effort by the Indian Air Force, one of the reports by ANI news agency said.

The Indian Army has deployed a brigade in the area where some posts are located above the altitude of 23,000 altitude where even breathing normally is a challenge.

Soon after taking charge as defence minister on Saturday, Singh asked senior officers to prepare detailed presentations on the ongoing projects and programmes. The officers have also been asked to complete projects in a “time-bound manner" to move effectively towards modernising the armed forces, a defence ministry statement said.