NEW DELHI: Days after being named the new Indian Army chief, General Bipin Rawat said on Tuesday that “surgical strikes” against Pakistan were meant to deliver a message. “The [so-called] surgical strikes were more of messaging. It was a messaging that was needed to be communicated,” Gen Rawat told NDTV in an exclusive interview. He also went on to say that the possibility of similar action in the future could not be ruled out. “If there are terrorist bases across, and if they continue to disrupt the situation on our side of the Line of Control (LoC) then we have a right to take action against the terrorists,” he added. The Indian army chief hinted at formulating new strategies to respond to “militants” across the border. “The demonstration of the surgical strike was just one such means. We are working on other such methodologies,” he said. The development came a day after Gen Rawat said India’s armed forces would not “shy away from flexing its muscles, if need be”. Rawat recently took over as the new chief of army staff from General Dalbir Singh Suhag as the head of the 1.3-million-strong force. He has served in the restive region of Held Kashmir. He has also served in the insurgency-hit northern states and along the border with China. In a rare move, the new chief was handpicked for the top job over two senior officers. agencies