Monthly Archives: August 2018

Army believes 1962 debacle is done and dusted, ‘ghosts of war’ have been purged

Ajay Banerjee

At the India-China border 16,000 feet above sea level, two signboards signal a sea change in the two countries’ relationship since 1962. “India-China friendship — for a bright and glorious future” and “Two neighbouring civilisations — partners in progress” are the messages the two leading Asian economies greet the visitors with.Though a two-way trade of US $72 billion makes the two nations global competitors for oil and resources, a “maitri hut” (friendship hut) at Bum La unites them. Military commanders of both sides meet at the hut, a border personnel meeting (BPM) point, five times in a year along with a small civilian population — Tibetans — of either side. A brief cultural show follows and gifts are exchanged. India believes the debacle of 1962 is clearly done and dusted. “There can be no comparison of today with 1962. We are in fine fettle,” says Brigadier DS Kushwah, who commands a brigade along the Line of Actual Control (LAC).All along the 367-km route from Bum La to Tezpur in Assam, that headquarters Army’s 4 Corps, memorials of the 1962 war dot the landscape. The memorials start from Bum La, close to the LAC, where Subedar Joginder Singh of the 1 Sikh regiment earned his Param Vir Chakra. En route, a memorial at Jaswantgarh — north of the Sela Pass — tells the tale of how Rifleman Jaswant Singh Rawat of the Garwhal Rifles held his ground in face of the enemy. At Nyukmadong, the 1962 defeat glares in the face. At Tenga, headquarters of 5 Mountain Division, stands a memorial that holds an urn of Jawaharlal Nehru’s ashes. Nehru, largely blamed for the agreeing to the forward policy advocated by Lt Gen BM Kaul, had died in May 1965.At Tezpur stands the stone cast memorial mentioning the names of martyrs of 1962 and 1971 wars. Here, the transition from defeat to a complete military victory stands starkly. At the memorials, people pay tributes and life moves on.Along the way, stone bunkers of 1962 with rusted steel doors, dug a few feet into the ground, a relic of the ill-planned past, are barely visible but tell a story of lack of military preparedness. A book History of the Conflict with China, 1962, produced by the Ministry of Defence, and released for restricted circulation in March 1993, says, “Strategically, Tawang were indefensible, in 1962, against a major attack”.Today, Tawang and its northern areas are well defended. Troops live in heated accommodation, sleep on bunk-beds with foam mattresses, use imported sleeping bags, have wooden cupboards and fresh food.The book reminds how in September 1967, five years after the war, China got “a reply” in Nathu La, indicating that the “ghosts of 1962” had been purged. “The Chinese troops suddenly opened machine gun fire on September 11, 1967, inflicting heavy casualties…the GOC 17 Div — the redoubtable Sagat Singh — blasted the Chinese positions with 5.5 medium guns. The Chinese agreed to a ceasefire on September 16. They had lost 400 men killed or wounded as compared to Indian loss of 65 killed and 145 wounded,” the book reads.

The Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) on Friday said the Indian army was without specialised parachutes for over a decade in a report tabled in Parliament on Friday.

It also raised questions on the functioning of army aviation corps, the cantonment boards, and shortfall in the availability of BMP vehicles in the Indian army.

“Combat free fall (CFF) parachutes are required during highly specialised operations and are vital for the success of the missions carried out by Parachutes Special Forces Battalions of Indian Army. However, the Army was without these specialised parachutes for over a decade,” the report said. The parachutes developed by DRDO in 2006 could not be successfully produced by the Ordnance Factory Board, even after incurring an expenditure of Rs 10.75 crore, it said.

The audit report was also critical of the army aviation corps saying it was plagued with 32%deficiency against its authorised fleet strength.

The country’s top auditor, separately, also slammed the Indian Air Force for sub-optimal utilisation of operational capabilities of AWACS (air borne warning and control system) aircraft purchased in 2004 for Rs 5,042 crore and has said shortage of aircrew may impact the operations of the planes during hostilities.

The Comptroller and Auditor General if India also slammed the low serviceability of the Sukhois, country’s front-line combat aircraft

India and Pakistan may address the issues dividing them in due course. There is, however, an urgent need to ease the plight of individuals who have been caught in the crossfire, such as Hamid Ansari of India, who went missing in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan in 2012, and Lahore journalist Zeenat Shahzadi, who disappeared when she attempted to look for him this year

THE India-Pakistan accord on the resumption of talks between them has led to considerable relief among the peace activists in both countries. But once again they are not being allowed to sustain their hopes of a fruitful understanding between their two nations.There is considerable speculation as to who persuaded Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to change course and his Pakistan counterpart Nawaz Sharif to respond to the former’s gesture with unusual alacrity. The issue is not altogether unimportant as accords made under third-party goading are more than ordinarily tenuous. Yet the prospect for broad-based negotiations can only be welcomed.It has been noted that both Pakistan and India have tried to accommodate each other’s point of view — Pakistan by agreeing to discuss terrorism in Bangkok and India by agreeing to talks in an enlarged format in Islamabad.Not everybody, however, is happy. An Indian expert says the compromise has benefited Pakistan while a Pakistani expert says his country has lost much. Such analyses are likely to poison the minds of people on both sides and encourage leaderships to revert to confrontation.While the two sides will address the issues dividing them in due course there is an urgent need to ease the plight of individuals who have been caught in the crossfire. They include fishermen folk and persons detained in the other country’s prisons. And there are victims of confrontation and hatred at the levels of officials and citizens — such as Hamid Ansari of India and Zeenat Shahzadi of Pakistan.Hamid Ansari was picked up by security agencies from a hotel in Kohat on November 14, 2012, and has been missing since. His tale of old world chivalry is worth telling. The 28-year-old IT Engineer and MBA from Mumbai was known for his desire to promote education and peace and had discussed with Rotary friends in Afghanistan and Pakistan plans to open an education centre for professional courses.He had some online friends in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Fata, especially a girl from the tribal area. She had been given away in marriage under a jirga decision on a tribal feud. Hamid decided to help her and was assured of full support by his Pakistani online contacts.Unable to get a visa for Pakistan, Hamid managed to arrive in Kabul, ostensibly for an interview for a job that was to take place on November 4, 2012. He somehow arrived in Pakistan around November 12, 2012, and stayed with one of his online friends, till another friend got him lodgings in a hotel in Kohat. From there, a police SHO took him away on November 14, 2012, and handed him over to an officer of a security agency.Attempts to register an FIR for his arrest and detention failed till the Commission of Inquiry on Enforced Disappearances ordered the registration of one in 2014. At the same time, a habeas corpus petition was moved in the Peshawar High Court. The names of Hamid’s Pakistani online friends are known. Some of his conversations with them are on record along with the statements of the police officers who picked him up from the hotel and collected his bag.At the time of his arrest, the only charge that could be brought against him was that he had illegally entered Pakistan. The maximum punishment for that offence is six months and Hamid’s detention period has already exceeded three years. If the police had found a missile or a couple of IEDs in his travel bag he might have been booked for espionage, sabotage, terrorism and what not. But there is no evidence of Hamid’s being accused of any such offence, or any offence at all.Three years is a long time to solve a well-documented case of enforced disappearance that is also on the roster of the Peshawar High Court.We may now move to another case of involuntary disappearance — that of Zeenat Shahzadi, described in the record as a journalist from Lahore.How and why did Zeenat get interested in the Hamid Ansari case is not known but she succeeded in securing in August 2013 a special power of attorney from Hamid’s mother, Fauzia Ansari. She pursued Hamid’s case in the Peshawar High Court and the Commission of Inquiry on Enforced Disappearances both. She was to appear before the commission on August 24, 2015, but before that she was picked up from a bus stand near her house in Lahore on August 19, 2015. A few days earlier too she had been held by the police for a short while after she had met the Indian high commissioner at a public event.Zeenat’s brother got an FIR registered and the matter was also raised before the commission which asked the Punjab Home Secretary to set up a joint investigation team (consisting of police and intelligence agencies) to trace Zeenat. The commission has held several hearings. It has also recorded the evidence of a rickshaw driver who had seen Zeenat being taken away by a couple of men in a white car.At each hearing before the commission, the JIT has been reporting its inability to find any clue to Zeenat’s whereabouts, and the police reiterate their incapacity to do anything. At the last hearing in November, Zeenat’s defenders found a family that had been pursuing the case of an enforced disappearance for four years, and their hearts sank.The cases of Ansari and Zeenat are unforgivable instances of poor governance and failure of the law and order machinery. They also expose ordinary citizens’ suffering for no reason other than callousness on the part of those who are paid out of public money to defend citizens’ basic rights and freedoms.The process of normalisation of relations between India and Pakistan will be greatly strengthened if the cases of individuals in distress are expeditiously and justly settled, the work of the joint committee on prisoners in one another’s jails is revived, and the recently raised barriers to people’s travel across the border are demolished.

By arrangement with Dawn.

NEW DELHI: Bangladesh observed its Victory Day on Wednesday to mark the defeat of Pakistan in 1971, when the country became independent after a nine-month war, against the backdrop of calls for Dhaka to cut ties with Islamabad for its denial of the genocide during the hostilities.

REUTERSBangladeshi soldiers march during the celebration of the country’s 45th Victory Day celebrations at the national parade ground in Dhaka on Wednesday.

The Dhaka University has cut all academic ties with Pakistan and newspapers have run reports and analyses criticising Pakistan, while many citizens on the streets are furious.

Foreign minister AH Mahmood Ali has said Bangladesh is “assessing” ties with Pakistan and families of martyred intellectuals have called for cutting all diplomatic relations.

Bangladesh says the genocide claimed three million lives while about 10 million more were forced to flee to India and 200,000 women were raped.

Pakistan has for long claimed there was no genocide in 1971. Pakistan’s recent statement criticising the execution of two convicted war criminals – Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) leader Salahuddin Quader Chowdhury and Jamaat-e-Islami leader Ali Ahsan Mohammad Mojahid –also infuriated Bangladesh.

The Sector Commanders’ Forum, an influential platform of war commanders, has sought an apology from Pakistan. Bangladesh also summoned the Pakistani envoy and lodged a strong protest for the stand taken by Islamabad against the trial of suspected war criminals and the “concern and anguish” expressed by Pakistan’s Foreign Office over recent executions.

In a front page report headlined “Pakistan Lying, Still – The blueprint for massacre”, The Daily Star newspaper described how the massacre was planned and executed in 1971.

Abu Bakar Bakar, a businessman, said on Wednesday this year’s commemoration of the victory over Pakistan was different.

“Two top war criminals have been executed despite huge international pressure,” he told Hindustan Times in Dhaka’s Uttara Model Town area while attending a concert with his son as part of the celebrations.

“Pakistan’s recent statement denying genocide is a lie. They should offer an apology immediately,” he said.

Beijing, December 16

On a key visit to China after his predecessor was denied visa, the head of Indian Army’s Northern Command has held talks with top defence officials here, focussing on fighting terror and maintaining peace on the Ladakh border, where many PLA incursions have occurred.Lt General DS Hooda, who is heading a six-member military delegation of top officials of his Command, arrived here on December 14 on a six-day visit to interact with his counterparts and to visit some of the military command centres which look after the India-China border.He held talks with General Qi Jianguo, Deputy Chief of General Staff, at the People’s Liberation Army Headquarters yesterday during which the two sides stressed on the need to ensure peace and tranquility along the border, an Indian Embassy statement said. Both sides hoped to further strengthen the bilateral defence exchanges by enhancing the frequency of interactions.“Both sides agreed that in the recent past, the political and military interaction between the two countries has increased which has been instrumental in achieving the aim of the leaders,” it said. — PTI

On 6-day visit to China

• Lt Gen DS Hooda, head of Army’s Northern Command, is heading a six-member delegation on a six-day visit to China
• He met Gen Qi Jianguo, Deputy Chief of General Staff, and both sides focused on strengthening defence exchanges by enhancing interaction between the two armies

NEW DELHI:  Ex-servicemen agitating over ‘One Rank, One Pension’ (OROP) issue today threatened to intensify the protest if their demands were not met by the Centre within three weeks.

The United Front of Ex-servicemen (UFES), an umbrella body of associations of ex-servicemen which is leading the protest, demanded that the Centre appoints “formally” former Army Chief and Union Minister VK Singh as the mediator between them and the government to resolve the issue “immediately”.

The veterans “gave” 15 days’ time to the government to “correct” its OROP scheme in line with the protesters’ expectations — failing which a seven-day notice period will be given to the government before the protest is intensified.

“We are giving the government 15 days’ time, requesting the government for mediation and after that we will give them seven days’ notice.

“Issue an order today itself empowering VK Singh to mediate with us and discuss the issue with us and resolve it within three-four days by removing seven discrepancies in the government OROP,” major general (retd) Satbir Singh, who is leading the protest, said.

Mr Singh made the demand during ‘Sainik Aakrosh’ rally organised by UFES at Jantar Mantar in Delhi.

Aiming to mount pressure on the NDA government, the UFES urged its members to not vote for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the upcoming assembly elections in several including Assam.

The veterans claimed it were the votes of ex-servicemen which helped BJP improve its tally in the 2014 Lok Sabha – more than what the NDA major itself had expected, they claimed.

However, the government has “cheated” veterans by not giving the OROP they wanted and BJP had promised to give, Mr Singh said.

“You saw what happened to the party in Delhi and recently Bihar. We urge the members to not vote for it in upcoming polls now if our demands are ignored,” he added.

The UFES also called upon ex-servicemen present at the rally to boycott Republic Day celebrations this year.

Major general (retd) Singh also hit out at Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley for stating that the government’s OROP formula was accepted by most of the ex-servicemen’s organisations and that only a small section had some issues with it.

“He (Jaitley) should come here and see the number of people who have turned up here,” Mr Singh said, pointing towards the gathering.

“The number would be even bigger had our other colleagues reached here in time. Jaitley claims their OROP is acceptable to most of us, it is a lie. More than 99.99 per cent of us are against it,” he claimed.

Mr Singh also challenged Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Mr Jaitley and Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar to face a debate with UFES on the issue and added that the ex-servicemen will call of the movement if proved wrong.

Mr Singh also announced the UFES rejected 7th pay commission report, saying it is over and above OROP.

The rally was also addressed by Colonel Inderjit Singh, who is considered to have begun the fight for OROP. He urged the ex-servicemen to stay “united” for their rights.

The government came out with a notification on OROP on November 7 but the veterans are still unsatisfied. They have demanded that OROP should be implemented from April 1, 2014 and not July 1, 2015 as in the government notification.
OROP principle is in perpetuity and cannot be fiddled with, they maintain.

Himanshu Kumar Lall,Tribune News Service,Dehradun, December 12

As many as 519 gentlemen cadets, including 50 from abroad, passed out from the portals of the Indian Military Academy amid a colourful ceremony here today.Army Chief Gen Dalbir Singh, who reviewed the passing out parade, asked the cadets to utilise the lessons of determination and courage learnt at the prestigious institute for the service of their country.The cadets displayed their marching skills to the tunes of ‘Col Bogey’ and ‘Saare Jahan Se Achcha’ in front of the historic Chetwode Hall. Gen Dalbir Singh said the bond of camaraderie that was established among the cadets during their training would get strengthened in the future. He said the pre-commission training had prepared them to face the toughest of the challenges. He asked them to remain updated on tactics, warfare, arms and equipment.The Army Chief gave away prizes. The coveted Sword of Honour award was bagged by Lalit Thapaliyal for best all-round performance. The Gold Medal went to Abhishek Kumar Singh while Somanagouda Mulimani was awarded the Silver Medal. Among foreign cadets, Nabin Shrestha from Nepal was given the Silver Medal. The Chief of Army Staff Banner was presented to Hajipir Company.Uttar Pradesh accounted for the highest number of 74 cadets, followed by Haryana with 67 and Bihar, Uttarakhand and Rajasthan with 29 each. Of the cadets, 382 were from 137 Regular Course and 87 from 120 Technical Graduate Course and 50 from five friendly nations: Afghanistan (31), Tajikistan (10), Maldives (6), Nepal (2) and Sri Lanka (1).

210 get commissioned from OTA in Gaya

• Chandigarh: The passing out parade of the eighth batch of trainees of the Officers Training Academy in Gaya was held on Saturday with 210 new officers getting commissioned after completing one-year training
• As many as 144 cadets were from the Technical Entry Course while 66 were Special Commission Officers

Indian Army gets 469 new officers

DEHRADUN: The historic and imposing Chetwode Building of the Indian Military Academy (IMA) was the perfect backdrop to the spellbinding passing out parade of 519 gentlemen cadets of the 137 Regular and 120th Training Graduate (TG) Courses, who were the cynosure of all eyes on Saturday morning. While 469 of the cadets were commissioned in the Indian army, fifty were foreign cadets from countries like Afghanistan, Bhutan, Maldives, Nepal, Mauritius, Seychelles and Sri Lanka.
Over 2,000 people had gathered at the venue much before the parade began. The last night drizzle had made the air nippy and there was a distinct chill which however slowly dispersed as the sun came out.
For most people though, their eyes were riveted on the majestic Chetwode Building named after Philip Chetwode, commander-in-chief of Indian forces who delivered a stirring address at the inauguration of the academy in 1932, a part of which has now become the IMA credo. Even before the parade started, the audience could hear the loud roar of the cadets, practicing at the far end of the academy.
The parade began soon after the arrival of the reviewing officer, army chief, General Dalbir Singh, who arrived on a four-horse carriage, originally belonging to the Maharaja of Patiala, which was gifted by the erstwhile royal family to the academy.
Speaking on the occasion, Gen Singh, said that he was transported back in time to 42 years ago, when as a gentleman cadet, he had participated in a similar passing out parade while graduating from the academy. “This is a very important day in your lives as you join the Indian Army and take the pledge of serving the country,” the Army chief said, advising the cadets to “lead by example.” He also quoted from the IMA credo to emphasize the responsibility which each officer had: “The safety, honour and welfare of your country come first, always and every time. The honour, welfare and comfort of the men you command come next. Your own ease, comfort and safety come last, always and every time.”
The majestic parade came to an end after each of the cadets had taken the ‘antim pag’, the final step inside the Chetwode Building symbolising their induction as officers in the Indian Army. A highlight of the parade was the fly past of three choppers that dropped flowers on the venue from the air which lent a festive touch to the entire atmosphere.

HE WAS THE COUNTRY’S LAST SURVIVING OFFICER TO BE DECORATED WITH MAHA VIR CHAKRA TWICE