I am a bit of newb, I always thought that even in this day and age, bayonets and khukris charging at you probably scares the shit out of any defence. But for a sniper makes no sense, dont they operate at a distance from the battle? Also, I have seen foreign snipers often carry a secondary weapon( an SMG or AR), do our snipers do the same?
Dragunov isn't a sniper to begin with, but a DMR which was introduced by Soviets to increase the range and accuracy of regular infantryman. Comparable with M14 EBR.
So unlike most snipers, its lightweight ,semi automatic and fit for medium range encounters where you don't care much about bullet drop and wind etc.
Perfectly fit for Kashmir where firefights occur at medium ranges. Also in kargil troops armed with Dragunov provided accurate fire and carried it right over the top peaks since it's only weight 5 kg ~
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PS - Bayonet charge is obsolete at least in high altitude warfare of Kashmir, LAC and Siachen. According to 1962 war veterans Indian troops charged the Chinese with Bayonet but with little effect since their bayonet couldn't penetrated the Winter Clothing while you need more force to charge at High Altitude due to lack of oxygen.
However, you can finish off the stragglers and wounded just like Bana Singh at Qaid Post.
