A decade after the Indian Army crossed the Line of Control to strike terrorist launch pads, the 2016 surgical strikes remain a defining episode in India’s evolving response to cross-border terrorism. The operation, conducted on September 28-29, 2016, came days after the deadly Uri terror attack and marked a significant shift in the way India publicly demonstrated its willingness to undertake targeted military action against terror infrastructure.
The surgical strikes in PoK were carried out against terrorist launch pads in Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir (PoJK) following the Uri attack, in which 19 Indian soldiers were killed. The operation was presented by the government as a direct military response to the attack and subsequently became an important reference point in discussions surrounding India’s counter-terrorism policy.
Speaking during his Mann Ki Baat programme on Akashvani, Prime Minister Narendra Modi described the 2016 operation as a historic milestone. Recalling the role of the Indian Army, Modi said the action demonstrated the determination of Indian soldiers and drew international attention to India’s response to terrorism. He recalled that Indian troops crossed the LoC to target terrorist hideouts, a move that he said surprised observers around the world.
The 10th anniversary has also brought renewed attention to the broader transformation of India’s security approach over the past decade. The government has linked the 2016 operation with subsequent military responses, including the Balakot airstrike in 2019 and Operation Sindoor in 2025, presenting them as part of an evolving counter-terrorism framework.
The Uri attack had served as the immediate trigger for the 2016 operation. The assault on an Army base in Uri in September that year resulted in the deaths of 19 soldiers and generated widespread demands for a strong response. The subsequent surgical strikes represented a departure from a purely diplomatic or defensive response and involved targeted action against identified terrorist launch pads across the LoC.
For the Modi government, the significance of the operation extends beyond the military action itself. It became a symbol of the government's stated policy of responding to terrorism with what it describes as greater decisiveness and a willingness to employ military options when required.
Modi also placed the 2016 operation in the longer history of terrorist violence in India. He recalled the period when serial bomb blasts and major terror attacks repeatedly shook the country. Referring to the September 13, 2008 Delhi serial blasts, he noted that several innocent people were killed. He also recalled the 26/11 Mumbai attacks that followed only weeks later.
These experiences shaped the country's security concerns and contributed to a change in its approach towards terrorism. He said India now follows a “zero-tolerance policy against terrorism”, reflecting the government's emphasis on preventing attacks and responding firmly to those responsible.
The decade since the surgical strikes has therefore been marked by a broader expansion of India's counter-terrorism narrative. The Balakot airstrike of February 2019, carried out following the Pulwama terror attack, and Operation Sindoor in 2025 have subsequently become part of the government's account of how India's security doctrine has evolved.
The 10th anniversary of the surgical strikes thus serves not merely as a commemoration of a single military operation but also as a point of reflection on a decade of changes in India's counter-terrorism posture. From the response to Uri in 2016 to subsequent military actions, the period has witnessed a greater emphasis on demonstrating that terrorist attacks would carry consequences beyond the immediate battlefield.
The government's message remains centred on deterrence, military preparedness and a stated refusal to treat terrorism as an issue that can be addressed only through conventional diplomatic channels. At the same time, the anniversary brings the focus back to the soldiers who lost their lives in the Uri attack and to the larger national-security challenges that have shaped India's policy over the past decade.
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