UTTARAKHAND: National Security Advisor Ajit Doval on Saturday attended the convocation as the chief guest of the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Roorkee, calling the graduates the luckiest generation in a millennium, entering a transformed world powered by unprecedented opportunities and technological growth.
Speaking as the chief guest at the institute’s two-day convocation ceremony, where 2,701 students were awarded degrees alongside Chief of Defence Staff General N.S. Raja Subramani as the guest of honour, NSA Doval highlighted how far society has progressed from past eras marked by struggle and constraints.
He said, “You may not be conscious of the fact that, in the last 1,000 years, you are the luckiest generation, which is going to have so many opportunities. Generations before you were struggling under slavery. And not only that, things have changed here, but globally too. Things have changed for the better for you.”
Doval further shared a riveting account from his early days in the intelligence service during an address at the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Roorkee convocation, recounting a high-stakes border mission during Sikkim’s merger with India.
He said, “I was a young IPS officer, new to the intelligence profession. I was in my 20s, and I was posted as in charge of intelligence in Sikkim. That was not a part of India at that time. It was becoming part of India. I was part of that process where the merger was taking place. But my responsibility also included looking after the border areas and collecting intelligence about the movement of the PLA, activities of the Chinese Army.”
Recalling a specific operation, Doval detailed how an intelligence team sent across the border failed to return within the scheduled window.
“Once, we had an intelligence mission in the border area, and about eight days later, they had to return. So, five days went by, then ten days went by, then perhaps 15 days went by. For me, it was a matter of very great concern, not only professionally but also on the human side, that so many people we don’t know whether they are dead or alive, and what has happened to them,” Doval said.
Informed that the personnel had been captured and interrogated by Chinese forces before eventually being repatriated following negotiations, Doval admitted he feared the incident marked a premature end to his career.
He said, “We got no reports of any avalanche or anything. It was a matter of deep worry and concern. But I got a telephone call from the headquarters, and my boss told me, “Have you sent some people across?” I said, “I do not know. They must be coming. They should have come in five or six days, but now it is about ten or eleven days.” He said, “They are in Chinese custody now.” They were caught by the Chinese and interrogated. Anyway, the Chinese returned them, probably after some talks or negotiations, or a deal must have been struck. So, they returned totally shattered, in shambles. And an inquiry was started. I knew that this was the end of my career. I was still in my twenties, and I had to start a new career. I saw the incident as something very unprofessional.”
Doval added, “Anyway, the inquiry was over. I wasn’t found at fault. Probably, I had done everything right. The sketches and the maps that were given to us by the headquarters had some defects and mistakes in them. That is how it happened…”
The National Security Advisor also lauded the historic legacy of IIT Roorkee while expressing gratitude to the faculty and parents who nurtured the students’ journeys.
” You may not be conscious of the fact that in the last 1000 years, you are the luckiest generation, which is going to have so many opportunities. Generations before you were struggling under slavery. They did not have those opportunities which opened up for you. And not only that, things have changed here, but globally things have changed for the better for you… You are coming at an age when technology will be the most important driving factor in any country’s or society’s growth and progress,” Ajit Doval said.
