Dehradun: Although the Taliban has taken over Afghanistan, trainee cadets from the Afghanistan Army continue to undergo training at the Indian Military Academy (IMA) here. However, doubts have now risen about their as it is still not clear what kind of relationship India will have with the fundamentalist regime in Kabul.
Minister of State for Defence Ajay Bhatt has said that India is monitoring the changed situation in Afghanistan and new Delhi will have to take a decision regarding that country under a new foreign and defence policy.
Now the decision regarding Afghanistan will be taken according to the new foreign and defense policy. After that a decision will be taken regarding Afghanistan.
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Every year, cadets of friendly nations undergo training at the IMA located in Dehradun, capital of Uttarakhand. Most of such cadets are are from Afghanistan. As of now, 83 Afghan cadets are undergoing training here.
When Bhatt was asked about whether Afghan cadets would be taken for training in IMA in the future, he said that nothing can be said about this yet. Stating the Afghan cadets currently undergoing training at IMA are good people and “not Talibani”, he said that the Indian government is worried about them as the situation in Afghanistan has said. Under these circumstances, speculations are rife that induction of trainee cadets by the IMA may be banned.
Recently, Indian Ambassador to Qatar met with senior Taliban leader Sher Mohammad Abbas Stanikzai in Doha. The meeting took place at the Indian Embassy at the request of the Taliban.
Apart from Afghanistan, gentleman cadets from 18 friendly countries, including Bhutan, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Tajikistan, Maldives and Vietnam, take training every year at IMA.
