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Vishav Bharti
Tribune News Service
Chandigarh, February 10

The 1919 Jallianwala Bagh massacre in Amritsar was not an isolated incident or the outcome of a brutal mindset, but a “calculated move to strike terror” among the masses, says a new book by a British historian.

To be released on Tuesday, Jallianwala Bagh: An Empire of Fear and The Making of A Massacre by Kim A Wagner argues that demonstrations of violence were intrinsic to the colonial encounter not just in British India, but also Asia, Africa and the Middle East.

The book is based on a range of material from diaries and letters to court testimonies. Wagner observes that the story of Jallianwala Bagh is also the story of a particular colonial mindset haunted by the spectre of the ‘Mutiny’ or the First War of Independence.

“After 1857, the British in India did not respond to local unrest as much as to what they imagined that unrest was or could become — hence the consistent disproportionality of violence on the part of the colonial regime. The Amritsar massacre was accordingly both retributive and pre-emptive: Dyer took revenge for the attacks on Europeans, including Miss Sherwood [a missionary teacher attacked in Amritsar], during the riots three days earlier, but he also acted to prevent a much bigger outbreak that he believed to be imminent.”

He writes that at Amritsar, Dyer had simply followed the example of so many colonial officials before him, including Frederick Henry Cooper, Amritsar DC during the 1857 rebellion, or L Cowan, who ordered Kukas to be blown from guns in 1872.

Both had resorted to “exemplary and indiscriminate violence when faced with rebellion and anti-colonial unrest”. Wagner says that rather than an exceptional episode, “in singular and sinister isolation”, the Amritsar massacre revealed the inner workings, and the imagined vulnerability, of the British colonial rule in India.

Colonial punishment, Wagner observes, had little to do with justice, and that the suppression of the unrest in Punjab in 1919 exposes the fundamental lie about the pre-eminence of the rule of law in British India in the most glaring fashion.

“A week after the massacre at Jallianwala Bagh, on 21 April 1919, Lieutenant Governor Michael O’Dwyer made a remarkable statement when defending Dyer’s actions to Viceroy Chelmsford: ‘The Amritsar business cleared the air, and if there was to be a holocaust anywhere, and one regrets that there should be, it was best at Amritsar. O’Dwyer was here using the word ‘holocaust’ in its literal sense of a ‘burnt offering’ – as a sacrifice. The crowd at Jallianwala Bagh, in other words, had to be sacrificed to produce the necessary effect, ‘clearing the air’, and preventing a second ‘Mutiny’.”

The book finds that Amritsar massacre was just in continuity of what the British were doing to the local populations, variously described as ‘tribal’, ‘savage’ or ‘fanatic’, on the North-West Frontier in Afghanistan, in Sudan or throughout parts of Africa and elsewhere.

They routinely massacred locals with machine guns, drove off cattle and burned villages in demonstrative displays of power. “What became known as ‘savage warfare’ was not simply shaped by the tactical necessities of asymmetric fighting against irregular enemies, but was based on deeply encoded assumptions concerning the inherent difference of local opponents.”

The Indian Air Force is all set to deploy ASRAAM heat seeking close combat air-to-air missile in its Sukhoi Su-30 MKI Fighters, Livefist has reported. The IAF is currently in the final stages of the programme to mate the British missile system with Russian-origin Sukhoi fighter jets.

A pair of HAL-built Su-30 MKI jets have gone through required modifications in software to deploy the MBDA ASRAAM missile, top IAF sources were cited in the report as saying.

The move comes after IAF successfully integrated the missile system with its Jaguar deep penetration strike jets. The ASRAAM integrated Jaguars are part of IAF’s £250 million contract with United Kingdom’s MBDA in July 2014. The modified Jaguars are to be declared operation ready this year.

According to the report, the IAF is intending to fully replace the Su-30 MKI’s current close combat missile, Russian Vympel R-73, with the ASRAAM in a phased manner.

The ASRAAM-armed Su-30 would be reportedly declared ready around the same time as the Jaguars, and will make use of the same test cycle.

National Aerospace Laboratory (NAL) was tasked with the checking the stability of the ASRAAM on the Su-30 airframe at its Bengaluru wind-tunnel.

NEW DELHI: The defence ministry is set to invite private sector companies to participate in the Rs 21,000 crore deal for new naval utility helicopters, which will be the first project to kick off under the strategic partnership (SP) policy under the ‘Make in India’ initiative.

Sources said that the first ‘expression of interest’ (EoI) to the private sector under the policy will be issued for the helicopter deal in the coming days while others like a mega plan to manufacture submarines,  ..

Tribune News Service

Jammu, December 5

Tributes were paid to the heroes of the Chhamb battle of 1971 at a solemn ceremony at Pannu War Memorial in Akhnoor under the aegis of the Crossed Swords Division on Wednesday.

A contingent of the 5 Sikh Regiment comprising Junior Commissioned Officers and other ranks was also present. It also paid homage to the heroes of their unit.

A defence spokesman said: “During the 1971 Indo-Pak war, a Company of the 5 Sikh Regiment was entrusted with the vital role of defending the important approaches to the Chhamb sector under the leadership of Major DS Pannu.”

“Over a period of four days, the brave soldiers successfully repulsed as many as 14 attacks, thereby foiling the designs of the Pakistan army in the sector. The brave soldiers stood fast till the end despite all odds and inflicted prohibitive losses on the enemy. Many of them, including Major DS Pannu, the Company Commander, sacrificed their lives in the line of duty in the finest traditions of the Indian Army,” he said.

On the solemn occasion, Maj Gen Rajinder Dewan, General Officer Commanding, Crossed Swords Division, Col NJS Pannu (retd), brother of Late Major DS Pannu, who was awarded the Vir Chakra posthumously, and other serving and retired soldiers laid wreaths at Pannu War Memorial.

A kirtan, ardas and langar were also organised at the memorial. A number of ex-servicemen and locals also attended the ceremony and paid respects to the brave sons of the nation.

In a sign of improved India-China ties, a senior Colonel of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army is currently in India for a year-long course in military management. Sources said the officer is currently with the College of Defence Management in Secunderabad, Telangana. He arrived in March this year. In another sign of the thaw in relations, the two armies will hold a counter-terrorism military exercise named ‘Hand in Hand’ in Chengdu between December 10 and 23. The joint exercise was cancelled in 2017. India will send 130 soldiers of the 11 Sikh Light Infantry.

India and China have exchanged personnel for courses in their military establishments but it was discontinued after a trust deficit between the two countries, especially after the 73-day stand-off in Doklam, Bhutan, last year.

“This is a good development. India and China are mature nations committed to improving relations further,” said Lt Gen SL Narsimhan (Retd), a member of the National Security Advisory Board.
He said more of such activities would result in improving mutual understanding.

The exchange of officers had started about 20 years back but it had few takers. The maximum exchange took place in 2003, when once officer each from the Army, Navy and Air Force went from India to China for a course in their military establishments.

New Delhi, January 25

It was love at first sight for Mahajabeen, wife of Lance Naik Nazir Ahmad Wani, when the two met at a school in South Kashmir around 15 years back.

Nearly one-and-a-half months after Wani’s death in an anti-terror operation in Shopian, Mahajabeen, a teacher and mother of two, says his immense love for her and fearless persona are a source of motivation for her to encourage youngsters to become good citizens.

“I did not cry when I was told he is no more. There was an inner resolve which did not allow me to cry,” she said after the government announced the Ashoka Chakra, India’s highest peacetime gallantry award, for Wani who hailed from Cheki Ashmuji in Kulgam district of Jammu and Kashmir.

Wani, a militant-turned-soldier who had joined the Army’s 162 Infantry Battalion (Territorial Army) Jammu and Kashmir Light Infantry in 2004, will be conferred the award posthumously on Saturday by President Ram Nath Kovind.

“He loved me so much. For me, he was my guiding light. He always encouraged all of us to make people around us happy, to address people’s problems.

“As a teacher, I am dedicating myself to creating good citizens for my state. Leading the young minds in the right direction is my resolve and I am drawing inspiration for it from my beloved husband–the best in the world,” said Mahajabeen.

Refusing to share details about their school and college days, Mahajabeen said, “We met at school. It was love at first sight. He was a great husband, always fiercely protecting us.”

Recalling the fateful day of November 25, Mahajabeen said she was at her parents’ house when the shocking news came.

“He had telephoned me the previous evening and enquired about our well-being. I had told him to take care of himself. But destiny had something else for him,” said Mahajabeen in an interview to PTI.

“He always wanted to make his 162/TA Jammu and Kashmir Light Infantry battalion proud. For him, duty was supreme. He was a source of inspiration for people in our area and community,” said Mahajabeen, who is in her late 30s.

On November 25, 38-year-old Wani lost his life in a counter-terror operation against six militants at Hirapur village near Batgund, in Shopian.

Under intense hail of bullets from the militants, he eliminated the ‘district commander’ of the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and one foreign militant in a daring display of raw courage, officials said.

In the ensuing gunfight, he was hit multiple times, including on his head. He also injured another militant before succumbing to grievous wounds, they said.

Apart from his wife, he is survived by two sons Athar (20) and Shaid (18).

“He was a brave soldier and a hero right from the beginning. He always served for peace in his home state of Jammu and Kashmir,” said a senior Army official.

Wani was a recipient of the Sena Medal for gallantry twice in 2007 and 2018. “He always had the interest of the nation in his heart. He operated with the Rashtriya Rifles units in Kashmir. Throughout his active life he always willingly faced grave potential threats and was a source of inspiration to others,” said one of his colleagues. PTI

We salute “Cartoos Sahib,’ whose fearlessness and commitment to duty is not just legendary but also unparalleled in the history of the Indian armed forces.

Several extraordinary war tales have undoubtedly emerged from the battle of Sylhet; from both the Indian and Bangladeshi fronts. However, nothing will come close to the bravado of Major General Ian Cardozo, who amputated his own leg after stepping on a landmine.

The year was 1971 and India was waging war with Pakistan to help expedite the liberation of Bangladesh. While his battalion, the 4/5 Gorkha Rifles was deployed in what was then East Pakistan, Major General Cardozo (who was a Major at that time) was enrolled in a course at the Defence Services Staff College in Wellington, Tamil Nadu.

Following the death of the officer who was the second-in-command of the battalion, an immediate replacement was to be found, and the concerned officials zeroed in on Major Cardozo. His posting was cancelled, and he was ordered to leave immediately.

His timely arrival was of immense help to the battalion, which was severely short on manpower. Through a swift military offensive that lasted only 13 days, India successfully defeated Pakistan and liberated Bangladesh.

It was during this time that the Major earned the nickname ‘Cartoos Sahib,’ as the soldiers in his battalion couldn’t pronounce his name!

This was also the war that witnessed Indian Army’s first-ever heliborne operation. In fact, the battalion of only 480 men charted history when they accepted the surrender of about 1,500 men that included three Brigadiers, a full Colonel, 107 officers, 219 Junior Commissioned Officers (JCO), and 7,000 troops from the Pakistan Army!

After the fall of Dhaka, when the Indian Army was rounding up the prisoners of war (POWs), Major Cardozo, who had gone to help the BSF commander in charge of the count, met with an accident that would change his life forever—he stepped on a landmine, and lost most of his leg in the resulting blast.

A part of his leg which had remained attached to his body, could not be amputated surgically because due to the extensive war wreckage, no form of medical anaesthesia or surgical equipment was available.

There was no time to waste, so he asked the doctor on duty to cut off the leg. Due to the lack of equipment, the doctor refused to perform the task, which prompted the Major to order his sahayak (orderly) to amputate his leg with his own khukri

When he too refused, Cardozo cut it off himself and dispassionately said, “Now go and bury it.”

It was Major Mohammad Basheer, a captured Pakistani Army Surgeon, who operated on Cardozo.

This incident would have meant the end of field duty for any other officer, but Major Cardozo was not going to be demoted to staff duty, and allow the impairment take control of his life. He valiantly fought for the commander’s position and even surpassed the ‘two-legged’ officers during the intense physical fitness examination.

History was created when he went to become the first war-disabled Army officer to command not just a battalion but also a brigade. For the uninitiated, a brigade in the army is typically composed of three to six battalions plus supporting elements.

And it wasn’t a cakewalk. Despite acing the fitness test, the medical officers didn’t clear Major Cardozo, so he took his case to General Tapishwar Raina, the then Chief of Army Staff. Impressed by Cardozo’s resilience, the General asked him to accompany him to Ladakh.

Upon observing that Major Cardozo could easily walk through the sturdy mountains with the snow hardly affecting him, the General personally recommended that the Major command a battalion. The incident repeated itself when Major Cardozo motioned for the brigade commander’s position, and emerged victorious once again. He reasoned that if he was capable of commanding a battalion, so should he be capable of commanding a brigade.

Thanks to Major General Cardozo, three other army officers later went to become army commanders. In fact, one of the officers, who was a double amputee, went on to become the Vice Chief.

After retirement, Major General Cardozo served as the Chairman of Rehabilitation Council of India from 2005 to 2011. A recipient of military decorations like the Ati Vishisht Seva Medal (AVSM) and the Sena Medal (SM), the 81-year-old currently resides in New Delhi with his wife, Priscilla and has three sons.

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We salute “Cartoos Sahib,’ the 1971 war veteran, whose fearlessness and commitment to duty is not just legendary but also unparalleled in the history of the Indian armed forces.

It is expected that the deal would be worth over Rs 1,000 crore.

NEW DELHI: In an apparent effort to bolster its infantry units against the tank regiments of the enemy nations, the Indian Army is planning to buy more than 3,000 Milan 2T anti-tank guided missiles from France.

It is expected that the deal would be worth over Rs 1,000 crore.

“An Army proposal in this regard would come up for discussion at a high-level meeting of the Defence Ministry for buying more than 3,000 of the second-generation Milan 2T ATGMs which are license-produced by the Bharat Dynamics Limited (BDL) in partnership with a French firm,” sources in the Defence Ministry told ANI.

ndian Army requires around 70,000 anti-tank guided missiles (ATGM) of various types and around 850 launchers of different types. The Indian Army is planning to procure third-generation ATGMs with a longer range than that of its existing Milan-2T and Konkurs ATGMs.

Sources told ANI that the Army’s decision to procure Milan 2T ATGMs should be seen as a stopgap arrangement as the Army is more focused on including its homegrown third-generation ATGM in its arsenal. It is to be noted that the third-generation ATGM is currently undergoing trials.

Last year, the government had decided to scrap a programme to buy the Spike ATGM from Israel keeping in mind the development made by Defence Research and Development Organization (DRDO) in this regard. The DRDO has already conducted two successful trials of the man-portable ATGMs.

Terming hybrid warfare — using non-state actors against an adversary nation — as “not the best option”, Indian Army chief General Bipin Rawat on Wednesday said this tactic was causing more damage to Pakistan than to India.

“Any nation that has attempted hybrid warfare against an adversary has finally been the sufferer. Today, Pakistan is facing that brunt,” Rawat said while delivering a lecture on “Challenges of hybrid conflict in 21st century”.

“They (Pakistan) supported something in Afghanistan but after the imbroglio was over, what happened to those people (the jihadis)? This hybrid warfare launched by them (Pakistan) has actually started affecting them more than it is affecting us,” Rawat said.

However, he warned that the proxy war by Pakistan is there to stay despite all the things and despite India’s effective tackling of it.

Responding to a query as to why India, even after suffering for decades, does not launch offensive hybrid warfare against Pakistan, Rawat said it is not the best option for India, and emphasised that India is satisfactorily countering this warfare directed against it. “Paying the other fellow exactly in the same coin may not be the best option. A stone that is thrown in the air comes back to your head.

“Before we launch the hybrid warfare in the offensive-defensive domain, we should be prepared to see what will happen to those people once the objective is achieved. What you do with those people?” he said.

While he underlined that India does have the capability to launch an offensive hybrid warfare or even “strike across” at those perpetrating the hybrid offensive against it, the army chief said for that the Indian leadership must be clear as to how far the country can go if an escalation happens.

“India will have to carefully work on the escalation matrix as to how far it was willing to go if escalation happens,” he added.

He said to counter such operations by Pakistan, which include a propaganda on the social media, various Indian forces and agencies need to work together in close coordination.

Rawat said India can utilise its soft power with friendly nations to isolate the terror-exporting nation and offered that the Indian Army can help the country expand its soft power in many ways.

Speaking on the Kashmir situation, Rawat said that sustained pressure is needed to tire out the militants instead of wrongly believing after a peaceful year in the Valley that lasting peace has returned.

“When things become comfortable, we would go into this limbo thinking that peace has returned, not knowing that every time the peace returns, the nexus has utilised this period to rebuild their capacities and strength. And therefore sustained pressure is required,” Rawat said.

“What I am trying to highlight is that you get one successful year and you say let’s give peace a chance. That is I think a fault that you have been committing.

“If you think that just after having one successful year you should give peace a chance, that may not be the best option. You should have repeated successes and then think of giving peace a chance. And that is what we are doing now. Let us look at tiring the other side,” he added.

He also rued that the army faces flak even for taking a tough action against those pelting stones at it.