"Prime Minister Narendra Modi had given full freedom to the forces," the Human Resource Development Minister told the media.

"IAF has taken the necessary steps for the security of the nation. The entire country stands with the forces," the Minister said in what was the first official statement by the government hours after Pakistan claimed that Indian jet crossed the Line of Control (LoC).

Foreign Secretary Vijay K. Gokhale will brief the media at 11.30 a.m.

The Director General of Pakistan's Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), Asif Ghafoor, tweeted early on Tuesday that the IAF planes dropped a payload near Balakot in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa before leaving as the Pakistan Air Force (PAF) scrambled its war planes.