Pakistan, during its recent conflict with India, targeted the Golden Temple in Amritsar and other cities of Punjab with missiles and drones, an attack which was successfully thwarted by the Indian Army. A demonstration of how the attempt was foiled by Indian Air Defence systems, including the AKASH missile system and the L-70 Air Defence Guns, was showcased by the Army on Monday. According to Major General Kartik C Seshadri, GOC (General Officer Commanding) 15 Infantry Division, the Indian Army had anticipated Pakistan’s move to target its military installations along with civilian establishments in Amritsar, including religious places such as the Golden Temple, which was the prime target according to information received from the intelligence. #WATCH | Amritsar, Punjab: Indian Army shows a demo of how Indian Air Defence systems, including AKASH missile system, saved the Golden Temple in Amritsar and cities of Punjab from Pakistani missile and drone attacks. pic.twitter.com/3HchX0yHJI — ANI (@ANI) May 19, 2025 “Knowing that the Pakistan army does not have any legitimate targets, we anticipated that they would target Indian military installations, civilian targets, including religious places,” Major General Seshadri said. “Of these, the Golden Temple appeared to be the most prominent. We mobilised additional modern air defence assets to give a holistic air defence umbrella cover to Golden Temple,” he added. Describing the Indian Army’s swift actions against the attacks from Pakistan, Major General Seshadri said Pakistan engaged in an air assault with aerial weapons, including drones and long-range missiles, targeting the Golden Temple, which was “thwarted” by the army personnel, who remained prepared for such situations and attacks. “On May 8, early morning, in the hours of darkness, Pakistan carried out a massive air assault with unmanned aerial weapons, primarily drones and long-range missiles. We were fully prepared since we had anticipated this, and our braveheart and alert army air defence gunners thwarted Pakistan Army’s nefarious designs and shot down all drones and missiles targeted at the Golden Temple, thus, not allowing even a scratch to come on our holy Golden Temple,” Seshadri was quoted by news agency ANI as saying. #WATCH | Amritsar, Punjab: Indian Army shows a demo of how Indian Air Defence systems, including the upgraded L-70 Air Defence Guns, saved the Golden Temple in Amritsar and cities of Punjab from Pakistani missile and drone attacks. pic.twitter.com/acej4SgL3v — ANI (@ANI) May 19, 2025 “Consequent to the Pakistan army-sponsored dastardly terrorist attack on innocent tourists, both domestic and international, the nation’s anger under able leadership took the form of ‘Operation Sindoor’, wherein befitting punitive strikes were carried out on exclusive terror targets. Nine targets were hit. Of the nine targets, seven were exclusively destroyed by the Indian Army,” he said. The Major General said that the armed forces targeted many places with “absolute precision” during ‘Operation Sindoor’, striking areas like Muridke and Bahawalpur, which house the headquarters of terrorist organisations. “Of these (nine) targets, Muridke, which is in proximity to Lahore, houses the Lashkar-e-Tayyaba headquarters and also the Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) headquarters at Bahawalpur, which were struck with absolute precision. Soon after the strikes, we issued a statement clarifying that we intentionally did not target any Pakistani military or civilian infrastructure,” he added. India’s Air Defence Systems proved their prowess at the height of the tensions between the two neighbours, intercepting numerous drones, missiles, micro UAVs, and loitering munitions, emerging as a globally actionable defence asset. India carried out precision strikes under ‘Operation Sindoor’ on terror infrastructure early on May 7 in response to the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack that killed 26 people. Following the Indian action, Pakistan attempted to attack Indian military bases on May 8, 9 and 10. India and Pakistan reached an understanding on May 10 to end the conflict after four days of intense cross-border drone and missile strikes.