2 weeks ago
Operation Sindoor Declassified: Modi Rejected Army's 'Op Tulip Garden' Name
A very bad attack happened in a beautiful place called Pahalgam, and it made people in India very sad and very angry.
India's leaders decided to respond, and the army had a plan with a name — 'Operation Tulip Garden.'
But the Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, chose a different name: 'Operation Sindoor.'
Sindoor is the red powder that married women in India wear in their hair, and Modi said the name was to remember the brave women whose husbands were killed in the attack.
Before the mission, the military made a long list of about 34 places it could strike.
After studying the list very carefully, the leaders chose only nine places, so the strikes would be very precise.
They wanted to hit terrorist camps but not hurt ordinary people who had nothing to do with the attack.
The Prime Minister approved the plan on April 30, and then the army and the air force carried it out.
The army struck seven places, and the air force struck two more, called Bahawalpur and Muridke.
Using one name for the whole mission helped all of India's forces work together as one team.
PM Modi personally chose the name "Operation Sindoor," rejecting the Indian Army's proposed "Operation Tulip Garden."
Modi said the name honored widows of the Pahalgam attack, as the terrorists erased the 'sindoor' of women who lost their husbands.
Military planners whittled down about 34 potential targets to nine locations — five in PoJK and four in Pakistan.
The nine targets included Syedna Bilal Camp, Sawai Nala Camp, Kotli, Gulpur Camp, Bhimber, Mehmoona Joya Camp, Sarjal Camp, Bahawalpur and Muridke.
The Indian Army struck seven targets while the Indian Air Force hit Bahawalpur and Muridke, after the plan was approved on April 30.
- Who
- Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Army Chief General Upendra Dwivedi, and India's military leadership, including National Security Adviser Ajit Doval
- What
- The naming of India's retaliatory military operation 'Operation Sindoor' and the selection of nine targets for strikes on terrorist camps
- Where
- Pahalgam in the Kashmir Valley; strikes targeted locations in Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir (PoJK) and Pakistan
- When
- Following the Pahalgam terror attack on April 22, 2026; the strike plan was formally approved on April 30
- Why
- To respond to the Pahalgam terror attack and send a strong message to terrorist groups while avoiding civilian casualties and war with Pakistan
Key facts
- Operation name
- Operation Sindoor
- Originally proposed name
- Operation Tulip Garden
- Pahalgam attack date
- April 22, 2026
- Final plan approval date
- April 30 (2026)
- Initial target list
- About 34 locations
- Final target list
- 9 locations — 5 in PoJK, 4 in Pakistan
- Strikes by service
- Army: 7 targets; Air Force: Bahawalpur and Muridke
- Terror group headquarters
- Muridke: Lashkar-e-Taiba; Bahawalpur: Jaish-e-Mohammed
Quotes
National Security Adviser Ajit Doval
Senior official responsible for national security advice
“Operation Sindoor isliye kyunki unhone humare mahila ke maan ka sindoor ujada hai toh hume uska badla lena hai.”
freepressjournal.in
“The plan to strike the nine locations was formally approved by the Prime Minister on April 30.”
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