Taliban attack on Afghan army blow to India also

The deadly and well-coordinated attack by the Taliban in the Northern Balkh province in Afghanistan on Friday afternoon, killing as many as 140 Afghan soldiers, is as much a blow to India as it is to Afghanistan.

Sources here said that the Taliban surge could affect a year-long Indian pilot project in the region, aimed at mobilising the rural poor into common interest groups for promoting savings, entrepreneurship and job creation. The project was modelled on self-help groups in Tamil Nadu and Madhya Pradesh. India also had plans to set up two basic health clinics and a comprehensive health clinic in the Balkh Province.

India has several developmental programmes running in the Northern Province, as part of the total assistance amounting to almost $3 billion.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi was among the first world leaders to condemn the attack. Later, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said in a statement that the attack was a stark reminder of the need to immediately dismantle safe havens of terrorism from outside that country’s borders, an obvious reference to Pakistan.

The MEA said India remained steadfast in its support to Afghanistan in fighting all forms of terrorism. Mazar-e-Sharif serves as the capital of the Balkh province, which …read more