The Dussehra 2026 Shastra Pujan in the Jammu Sector was led by Lieutenant General Pushpendra Singh, Army Commander of the Indian Army's Western Command, who visited forward areas on Tuesday and spent the festival with troops deployed along the frontier.

He reviewed the operational preparedness of the formations holding the sector and joined the traditional worship of weapons.

The Army Commander commended the troops for their dedication, high morale and combat readiness in demanding conditions, defence sources said. He urged them to keep their operational readiness at the highest standard at all times, the sources added.

"Rooted in Tradition. Resolute in Duty. Ever Ready for Battle," Western Command said in its message on the day.

Dussehra 2026 Shastra Pujan held in Jammu forward areas

The armed forces observe Shastra Pujan on Vijayadashami as a mark of respect for their weapons and the warrior tradition. According to Western Command, the ceremony stood for the bond between the soldier, his weapon and the duty of safeguarding the nation. Marigold offerings were carried in brass plates as the Army Commander performed the puja, with troops in full combat gear and Army vehicles lined up behind him. Vijayadashami fell on Tuesday this year, closing the nine days of Navratri.

Drones on the puja table

Rifles were not the only equipment honoured. Multi-rotor drones, laid out on camouflage cloth, sat in front of the Army Commander at the Dussehra 2026 Shastra Pujan.

Western Command has pushed unmanned systems at formation level this year. In August, its innovations competition hosted by Vajra Corps put 54 indigenous entries on display, covering unmanned aircraft, counter-drone systems, AI-enabled analytics and autonomous systems. The Indian Air Force followed in September with Dronathon 2026 at Pokhran, where domestic firms demonstrated drone and counter-drone systems.

Defence Minister marked Vijayadashami in Dushanbe

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh spent Tuesday in Dushanbe, Tajikistan, where he represented India at the 25th SCO Council of Heads of Government meeting. The two-day trip was announced by the Ministry of Defence on Sunday.

For several years, the Defence Minister has performed Shastra Puja with troops on Vijayadashami, a practice he kept up during his tenure as Union Home Minister as well.

Shastra Puja with troops from Auli to Bhuj

On October 5, 2022, he performed the puja at a military base in Auli, Uttarakhand, and praised the bravery of soldiers in the Galwan Valley clashes of June 2020. Soldiers at the base sang patriotic songs on the occasion.

The next year took him east. On October 24, 2023, accompanied by Army Chief General Manoj Pande, he performed Shastra Puja with troops at Tawang in Arunachal Pradesh, visited forward posts along the Line of Actual Control and laid a wreath at the Tawang War Memorial in honour of those killed in the 1962 war.

In 2024, the venue was the 33 Corps headquarters at Sukna in Darjeeling district of West Bengal, on October 12. Army Chief General Upendra Dwivedi was present as the Defence Minister began with Kalash Puja, followed by Shastra Puja and Vahan Puja, according to reports at the time.

"Shastra Puja is a clear indication that if need be, the weapons, equipment will be used with full force," he said at Sukna.

Last year's ceremony, on October 2, 2025, was at the Bhuj Military Station in Gujarat, months after Operation Sindoor. He credited the operation's success to the jointness of the Army, Navy and Air Force, and virtually inaugurated the Tidal Independent Berthing Facility and the Joint Control Centre in the Creek sector. General Upendra Dwivedi attended, along with General Dhiraj Seth, then a Lieutenant General commanding Southern Command and now the Chief of the Army Staff.

"The balance of Shaastra (knowledge) and Shastra (weapons) keeps our civilization vibrant and invincible," the Defence Minister said at Bhuj.

BSF gunners worshipped their guns at Jaisalmer

The Border Security Force keeps the same tradition on the western border. On Vijayadashami last year, its 1055 Artillery Regiment in Jaisalmer held Shastra Pooja on the India-Pakistan border, opening with an invocation to Goddess Durga before the guns were offered flowers.

"Weapon worship is the worship of power," said ML Garg, Inspector General of the BSF's Rajasthan Frontier, at the ceremony.