Lt Gen Walter Anthony Gustavo Pinto, who had played a key role in the Indian victory in the Battle of Basantar, one of the most crucial operations in the Punjab-Jammu sector during the 1971 War, passed away at the age of 97.
As a Major General he had commanded the 54 Infantry Division during the war that had moved from its peace time location in Secunderabad to Punjab. Tasked for offensive operations in the Shakargarh bulge, the division crossed the border on December 6 and captured key areas.
Played key role in Battle of Basantar
Lt Gen Walter Anthony Gustavo Pinto had played a key role in the Indian victory in the Battle of Basantar, one of the most crucial operations in the Punjab-Jammu sector during the 1971 war
Troops from the division were conferred as many as 196 gallantry medals, including two Param Vir Chakra and nine Maha Vir Chakra, while Maj Gen Pinto was awarded the Param Vishisht Seva Medal. — TNS
Indian Army Recruitment 2021: भारतीय सेना में बिना परीक्षा के बन सकते हैं अधिकारी, आवेदन करने की कल है आखिरी डेट, लाखों में होगी सैलरी
Indian Army Recruitment 2021: भारतीय सेना (Indian Army) में अधिकारी बनने का सपना देख रहे युवाओं के लिए एक अच्छा मौका है. सेना (Indian Army) में तकनीकी ग्रेजुएट पाठ्यक्रम (TGC-133) भर्ती (Indian Army TGC Recruitment 2021) के लिए आवेदन करने की कल अंतिम डेट है. इसके लिए (Indian Army Recruitment 2021) आधिकारिक वेबसाइट पर एक नोटिफिकेशन भी जारी किया गया है. उम्मीदवार जो अभी तक इन पदों (Indian Army Recruitment 2021) के लिए आवेदन नहीं किए हैं, वे Indian Army की आधिकारिक वेबसाइट joinindianarmy.nic.in पर जाकर 26 मार्च तक या उससे पहले अप्लाई कर सकते हैं. Also Read – Indian Army Recruitment 2021 Rally: 8वीं, 10वीं पास के लिए भारतीय सेना में शामिल होने का सुनहरा मौका, बिना परीक्षा के मिलेगी नौकरी, जल्द करें अप्लाई
ऑनलाइन आवेदन करने की शुरुआत तिथि – 25 फरवरी 2021 ऑनलाइन आवेदन करने की अंतिम तिथि – 26 मार्च 2021 दोपहर 3 बजे तक
Indian Army Recruitment 2021 के लिए रिक्ति विवरण
कुल पद – 40
सिविल / भवन निर्माण प्रौद्योगिकी – 11 पद आर्किटेक्ट- 1 पद इलेक्ट्रिकल / इलेक्ट्रिकल और इलेक्ट्रॉनिक्स – 4 पद कंप्यूटर Sc & Engg / Computer Technology / Info Tech / M. Sc Computer Sc – 9 पद सूचना प्रौद्योगिकी (आईटी) – 3 पद इलेक्ट्रॉनिक्स और दूरसंचार – 2 पद दूरसंचार इंजीनियरिंग – 1 पद इलेक्ट्रॉनिक्स और कम्यूनिकेशन – 1 पद सेटेलाइट कम्यूनिकेशन – 1 पद एरोनॉटिकल / एयरोस्पेस / एवियोनिक्स – 3 पद ऑटोमोबाइल इंजीनियरिंग – 1 पद कपड़ा इंजीनियरिंग – 1 पद
Indian Army Recruitment 2021 के लिए वेतन
लेफ्टिनेंट – रु. 56,100 – 1,77,500 कैप्टन लेवल – रु.61,300-1,93,900 मेजर – रु. 69,400-2,07,200 लेफ्टिनेंट कर्नल स्तर – रु. 1,21,200-2,12,400 कर्नल स्तर – रु. 1,30,600-2,15,900 ब्रिगेडियर स्तर – रु. 1,39,600-2,17,600 मेजर जनरल लेवल – रु. 1,44,200-2,18,200 लेफ्टिनेंट जनरल एचएजी स्केल – रु.1,82,200-2,24,100 लेफ्टिनेंट जनरल एचएजी – रु. 16 2,05,400-2,24,400 VCOAS / सेना Cdr / लेफ्टिनेंट जनरल (NFSG) – रु. 2,25,000 / – (निश्चित) COAS – रु. 2,50,000 / – (निश्चित)
Indian Army Recruitment 2021 के लिए योग्यता मानदंड
उम्मीदवार को संबंधित क्षेत्र में किसी मान्यता प्राप्त विश्वविद्यालय से BE/B.Tech होना चाहिए. साथ ही इंजीनियरिंग डिग्री कोर्स के फाइल ईयर वाले भी उम्मीदवार आवेदन करने के लिए योग्य हैं.
Indian Army Recruitment 2021 के लिए आयु सीमा
उम्मीदवारों की आयुसीमा 20 से 27 वर्ष (01 जुलाई 2021 तक) के बीच होनी चाहिए.
CHANDIGARH: In a historic decision, the Cabinet has extended the benefit of Ex-Servicemen Contributory Health Scheme (ECHS) to short service commissioned officers and emergency commissioned officers (SSCOs and ECOs) as well as some other categories of ex-military personnel.
The decision would immediately benefit over 43,000 individuals, who can now avail of free medicare in ECHS polyclinics and private empanelled hospitals after paying a one-time subscription. — Photo courtesy: echs.gov.in
amansharma@tribunemail.com
Vijay Mohan Tribune News Service Chandigarh, March 7
In a historic decision, the Cabinet has extended the benefit of Ex-Servicemen Contributory Health Scheme (ECHS) to short service commissioned officers and emergency commissioned officers (SSCOs and ECOs) as well as some other categories of ex-military personnel.
Under regulations in vogue, only those defence personnel drawing a pension from the defence estimates are considered as “ex-servicemen” and those who do not fall under this category were not being granted certain benefits like the ECHS. They had been struggling for getting such benefits for the past several years.
The decision would immediately benefit over 43,000 individuals, who can now avail of free medicare in ECHS polyclinics and private empanelled hospitals after paying a one-time subscription, sources said.
The decision today comes in wake of directions issued by the Supreme Court in January that granted time to the government till April to act upon the issue while hearing an appeal filed by Ministry of Defence (MoD) against a judgement of the Chandigarh Bench of Armed Forces Tribunal (AFT).
In 2011, the AFT had ordered restoration of medical facilities to non-pensioner military veterans that had been abruptly withdrawn by the Director General Armed Forces Medical Services (DGAFMS) in late 2000s.
Medical facilities in military hospitals (MHs) were being provided to non-pensioner ex-defence personnel since 1970. Later, pension was made compulsory for availing facilities.
In 1997, the term ‘ex-service pensioners’ was again replaced by ‘ex-servicemen’ by the MoD thereby restoring facilities to those veterans who were released with the status of ‘ex-servicemen’ but without getting any pension.
In late 2000s, the DGAFMS started refusing treatment in military hospitals to non-pensioners. The AFT, in a strongly worded order, had directed the DGAFMS to restore the “illegally” withdrawn facilities, but the order was challenged in the apex court the same year.
In 2015, a Committee of Experts constituted by the government to suggest ways for reducing litigation had also came down heavily on the DGAFMS for this action, terming it to be illegal and recording that “such persistence and exertion in pursuing such misdirected litigation should rather be used for constructive activities”.
The panel also castigated the establishment for citing grossly exaggerated figures of affected beneficiaries in the appeal filed in SC. The committee’s recommendation for withdrawal of the appeal was accepted by the then defence minister, but his directions were not given effect which prompted the SC to direct the MoD to speed up the process.
Sources said the Cabinet decision to implement the judicial orders, which would affect thousands of past, present and future officers, not only includes non-pensioner SSCOs, ECOs and World War II veterans but also premature retirees of other categories. The fine print of other modalities of the scheme would be known in due course.
SC sets right the gender-skewed selection criteria
Photo for representational purpose only
The Supreme Court directive to reconsider giving permanent commission in the Army to Short Service Commission women officers — calling the medical grounds for their rejection as being systematically discriminatory — smoothens the path for aspiring lady officers to equal opportunity in public employment and also underscores gender equality. It is a pity that the SC’s watershed ruling of February 2020 that allowed SSC women officers’ full integration into the defence services, including in combat positions, was not being upheld in letter and spirit. The apex court has minced no words in pointing out the gender-skewed selection criteria adopted.
A pattern of evaluation of merit that is derived from an equal society — one that affords a fair work ambience and dignity to women — is needed. The one prevailing is drawn from a world created by ‘males for males’, as the SC observed, and only serves to bestow equality on a superficial or symbolic level. Ever since their entry into the tri-services was allowed, women have with tenacity met the exacting standards of the armed forces. With postings in difficult terrains and conflict zones, they have time and again proved that valour has no gender. In the last six years, their strength in the military has increased three-fold, with over 9,000 women currently serving in the Army, Navy and Air Force.
But sadly, it has been an uphill battle and they have had to petition the Supreme Court at every stage to get their rightful dues. The forces must remedy the hesitancy in providing them with greater responsibility. Removing the hurdles that are detrimental to the induction and career progression of the lady defence officers and providing the qualified women a level playing field is bound to make the armed forces better and stronger. It also assumes significance in light of the acute shortage of officers in the Army. There is a lot to learn from the armies of Israel, Germany, Australia and the USA, which have benefited from the services of their women soldiers in intensive combat roles for many years.
Eastern Ladakh situation ‘eased distinctly’ thanks to joint efforts with India, says China
Beijing: The Chinese military on Thursday said the situation at eastern Ladakh has “eased distinctly” thanks to the joint efforts with India on the disengagement of troops from the Pangong Lake area but gave no indication about when the pull out will take place from the remaining areas along the Line of Actual Control (LAC).
As a result of a series of military and diplomatic talks, the two countries had completed withdrawal of troops and weapons from the North and South banks of Pangong Lake last month in line with an agreement on disengagement.
But the disengagement is yet to take place in remaining areas along the LAC. The Indian Army has been pitching for a faster disengagement process in areas like Hot Springs, Gogra and Depsang to bring down tension in the mountainous region.
At present, China and India have disengaged front-line troops in the Pangong Lake area and both countries have positively commented on the current moves, Senior Colonel Ren Guoqiang, a spokesperson for China’s Ministry of National Defence said at an online media briefing.
“Thanks to the joint efforts made by China and India, the situation in the border area has been eased distinctly, he said.
Both sides have agreed to maintain communication through military and diplomatic channels to promote the settlement of other issues in the west section of the China-India boundary, Ren was quoted as saying by the Chinese military-run China Military Online portal.
Ren was responding to a question on reports quoting the External Affairs Ministry spokesman asking China to complete its military withdrawal at the remaining friction points along the LAC.
China hopes the two sides can value the hard-won results, follow the important consensus reached by the leaders of both countries, maintain dialogue and communication and stabilise the situation against relapse, gradually coming to solutions that can be accepted by the two countries to jointly maintain peace in the border area, he said.
The border standoff between the Indian and Chinese armies erupted on May 5 last year following a violent clash in the Pangong Lake area and both sides gradually enhanced their deployment by rushing in tens of thousands of soldiers as well as heavy weaponry.
New Delhi: Army Chief Gen MM Naravane said on Thursday the threat to India has only “abated” following the disengagement in Pangong lake areas in eastern Ladakh after the agreement with China but it has not gone away altogether.
He also asserted that it would be incorrect to say that the Chinese troops were still sitting on territories in eastern Ladakh that were in India’s control before the face-off erupted in May last year.
Referring to the situation in the mountainous region, Gen Naravane told an interactive session at the India Economic Conclave that the military strength in rear areas remained what it was even at the height of border tensions.
The Army Chief replied in the affirmative when asked by the moderator whether he concurs with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s remarks after the border standoff that the Chinese have not come into control of Indian territory.
“Yes, absolutely,” he said.
He also said that patrolling has not resumed in the region as tensions are still running high and there are always chances of face-offs and inadvertent escalation of the situation when it starts.
The border standoff between the Indian and Chinese armies erupted on May 5 last following a violent clash in the Pangong lake areas and both sides gradually enhanced their deployment by rushing in tens of thousands of soldiers as well as heavy weaponry.
As a result of a series of military and diplomatic talks, the two sides completed withdrawal of troops and weapons from the North and South banks of Pangong lake in line with an agreement on disengagement last month.
“There are some areas which we still have to negotiate but in the overall scheme of things, (I) feel that we have very strong grounds to believe that we will be able to achieve all our aims,” Gen Naravane said.
When asked specifically whether the Chinese were still sitting on territories that were in India’s control before April 2020, he said: “No, that will be an incorrect statement.
“There are areas which are under nobody’s control. So where we were controlling we were in those areas and where they were controlling, they were in those areas,” he said.
“The whole issue of Line of Actual Control (LAC) is because of these grey areas. Because there is no demarcated LAC and there are different claims and perceptions. So unless the LAC is demarcated, you cannot make the statement that I am where I am, he is where he is,” he added.
Asked about allegations in some quarters that the Chinese were in Indian territories, the Army Chief responded by saying the force was confident of its capabilities and that it knew what it had achieved.
“They (the Army personnel) have done their job….In the Army you learn to be thick-skinned,” he said, when asked about some criticism of handling of the border situation.
Gen Naravane said unless the troops in rear bases go back, it would not be possible to say that things are back to normal.
“After several rounds of talks, we succeeded in getting some agreement on the disengagement of troops which were face-to-face with each other which could have led to some misunderstandings and flare ups,” he said.
“Now they are not face-to-face but have disengaged and gone back to the agreed positions. But the strength in rear areas remains what it was even at the height of the tension. So the threat has only abated and it has not gone away altogether,” he said.
On the military talks, the Army Chief said the political leadership very clearly enunciated that it has to return to the status quo of April 2020 and that remained the bottom line for India in all the negotiations.
To a question whether India has access to all the areas that it had before the face-off, the Army Chief said: “I won’t say that we do not have occupation of those areas, but that will be the focus of our talks in the next round of discussions.”
“There are some areas which still remain to be negotiated.”
On patrolling, he said the view has been that there is a need to go step by step.
“We have done the disengagement, let us see how that goes and then, through the talks we will see how to resume the patrolling,” he added.
Replying to a question on developments in Depsang and some other friction points, the Army Chief said these are the issues that will be discussed in future rounds of talks.
“The guiding principles still remain that we need to restore the traditional rights and that would apply to both sides, after all it is not as if only they were doing the patrolling,” he said.
On whether China can be trusted, he quoted the term used by former US President Ronald Regan– “trust but verify”.
“All agreements are based on trust and all agreements are based on the premise that they will be followed in letter and spirit. If you decide not to do that then why do you have an agreement in the first place.”
“We have to believe that they are serious this time and they will abide by all the clauses of the particular agreement as also abide by the clauses of the previous agreements,” he said.
The Army Chief said if need be, there is a room for renegotiating those agreements so that the incidents which took place because of not following them in letter and spirit do not take place in the future.
Army Chief General M M Naravane addresses an annual press conference at the Manekshaw Centre in New Delhi on 12 January 2021 | Vijay Verma| PTIText Size: A- A+
New Delhi: The Line of Control in Jammu and Kashmir has been silent for the first time in around five to six years as not a single shot was fired in March, Army Chief Gen M M Naravane said on Thursday referring to the recent commitment by Indian and Pakistani militaries to observe ceasefire in the region.
The Army Chief, however, said the terror infrastructure including terrorist launch-pads on the Pakistani side remained intact, asserting that it cannot be business as usual unless the neighbouring country stops supporting terrorism.
Speaking at the India Economic Conclave, Gen Naravane said he was optimistic that the ceasefire will hold as the Pakistan Army was on board.
“I am glad to inform that in the whole month of March, we have not had a single shot fired at the Line of Control (LoC) barring an odd incident. It is for the first time in about five or six years that the LoC has been silent. That really bodes well for the future,” he said.
Last month, the Indian and Pakistani armies recommitted themselves to the 2003 ceasefire agreement on the Line of Control (LoC) in Jammu and Kashmir. The return to the ceasefire was agreed upon by the director generals of military operations of the two countries.
“Our core issue is that they have to stop support to terrorism. Unless they stop that it cannot be business as usual,” Gen Naravane said at the conclave organised by Times Network.
Asked what could have prompted Pakistan to suddenly agree to the ceasefire, Gen Naravane said the duels between the two sides had not resulted any forward movement and that Islamabad has its own internal problems.
“I feel that they have their own problems internally and from time-to-time, you have to also see whether a strategy that you are following is actually paying any dividend,” he said.
“Over so many years, they would have also realised that it is time to make a change and that would have prompted them to extend this olive branch,” he added.
To a question, the Army Chief said he was optimistic that the ceasefire will hold and even made an apparent reference to recent comments by Pakistan Army Chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa.
“I would say we are very optimistic especially with the comments which have been made recently and the very important point is that the agreement is between the DGMOs of both the sides,” Gen Naravane said.https://d4338f2c739a680793bc7407f46eb4b8.safeframe.googlesyndication.com/safeframe/1-0-38/html/container.html
“So obviously the Pakistan Army is on board and if the Pakistan Army is on board then there is every reason to be quite optimistic of the outcome,” he said.
On India-Pakistan ties, Bajwa recently said it is “time to bury the past”.
Gen Naranave also talked about terror infrastructure on the Pakistani side, saying India has intelligence inputs about them.
“The terror infrastructure and launch pads remain in place. We have detailed intelligence of each of those camps, locations and likely strength of terrorists awaiting and who have undergone training and are present there, perhaps waiting for an opportunity to cross over,” he said.
Asked whether Pakistan agreed to the ceasefire under compulsion, the Army Chief said, “Yes, that’s quite possible.”
“We will have to wait and see. Once the snow melts and passes open, if the situation still remains normal then there is a good prognosis for the future, we have to wait and see,” he said.
When pressed further to explain the possible compulsions of Pakistan, Gen Naravane mentioned the situation in Pakistan’s border with Afghanistan as well as pressure on that country to comply with recommendations of the anti-terror watchdog Financial Action Task Force (FATF).
“One is of course the situation on their western border with Afghanistan. Things are not very rosy there as far as they are concerned,” he said.
“The second is the threat of the FATF which hangs over their head. They are still in the grey list. Probably they would like to show that they are making some efforts to not support terrorism and third of course is their domestic compulsions,” he said.
New Delhi: Amid a fragile peace at the Line of Control continuing, Brigade-level commanders from India and Pakistan met Friday to discuss implementation mechanisms in accordance with the ceasefire understanding reached a month ago.
The Brigade Commander Level Flag Meeting was held between Indian and Pakistan Army at Poonch Rawalkot Crossing Point earlier in the day.https://ef8512271f29acb9633a48cfd89ec871.safeframe.googlesyndication.com/safeframe/1-0-38/html/container.html
In an official statement, the Army said that this was to “discuss implementation mechanisms as per the understanding”.
The meeting comes a day after Army chief General M.M. Naravane welcomed the guns falling silent at the LoC but flagged the continued presence of terror infrastructure, including terrorist launchpads on the Pakistani side.
He asserted that it cannot be business as usual unless the neighbouring country stops supporting terrorism.https://imasdk.googleapis.com/js/core/bridge3.447.1_en.html#goog_24347383
Army sources said that the meeting between the Brigadiers was to resolve issues at local level, which basically pertained to civilians living close to the LoC.
The sources backed Gen. Naravane’s statement on terror infrastructure being present on the Pakistani side of the LoC but underlined that no infiltration attempt has been made in the last one month.
Giving details of the terror infrastructure across the LoC, sources in the defence and security establishment told ThePrint that there are a total of 27 launchpads for terrorists.
Besides this, there are at least 17 terror training camps that continue to operate in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir.
On the terror infrastructure on the Pakistani side, Gen. Narvane had said India has intelligence inputs about them.
“The terror infrastructure and launchpads remain in place. We have detailed intelligence of each of those camps, locations and likely strength of terrorists awaiting and who have undergone training and are present there, perhaps waiting for an opportunity to cross over,” he said.
India had pitched its case in a post-conflict Sri Lanka at the UN on two pillars — sovereignty of Sri Lanka and the rights of Tamils. This new strategic formulation for the first time equated the political aspirations of Tamils with recognising the territorial integrity of Sri Lanka drawn from the 1987 agreement which involved the sacrifice of 1,200 Indian soldiers who prevented the break-up of Lanka. That and assistance in defeating the LTTE, overriding Tamil politics, was the litmus test.
Bridge the hiatus: Sri Lanka has refused to budge on allowing international investigations into human rights abuses during the civil war. Reuters
Maj-Gen Ashok K Mehta (retd)
military commentator
Effusive with optimism over a crucial vote against Sri Lanka on accountability over alleged human rights violations during the war on Tuesday at the UNHRC, Geneva, Foreign Secretary Jayanath Colombage said: ‘India has assured Sri Lanka of support’. Earlier he noted: ‘India cannot abandon us, we are immediate family’. In the seven UN resolutions on Sri Lanka since 2009, India voted in favour of the resolution in 2009, 2010 and 2012, and against it in 2013, while abstaining in 2014 which was welcomed by Sri Lanka. In 2015, India endorsed the US-Sri Lanka co-sponsored UNHRC resolution 30/1 from which Colombo withdrew last year with the return of Rajapaksas. On Tuesday, India abstained even as an overwhelming majority voted against Sri Lanka.
Sri Lanka has dragged its feet on reconciliation and accountability, vaulting from partial to full action to non-compliance. Equally, it has dithered on the implementation of the 13th Amendment, its position determined by the political clout of the government and India’s own political compulsions in Tamil Nadu. The West, led by the US and Europe, have imposed commercial and trade sanctions. While China and Russia have provided Colombo political cover, the West has been aggressively intrusive. India has acted in its national interest — either abstained from voting or supported resolution, and once voted against it.
A lot of water has flown down the Mahaweli river since. The Rajapaksa brothers are back with an unprecedented majority following the Easter Sunday bombing (2019), abolition of 19th Amendment and a likely new Constitution that could terminate the chequered 13th Amendment, putting paid to reconciliation with minority Tamils. Colombo is aware that provincial autonomy in the North within a united and indivisible Sri Lanka is a red line for New Delhi and tinkering with it is according to former President Maithripala Sirisena, ‘playing with fire’. China and Sinhala majoritarianism have emboldened the Rajapaksas to try and dare India.
Recent events — national anthem in Sinhala only, militarisation of the North, bulldozing the civilian war memorial at Jaffna University, pardon of Sergeant Sunil Ratnayake who killed eight Tamils, refusal to allow burial of Muslims till recently, cancellation of India-Japan joint venture for the Eastern Container Terminal in Colombo, offer of a solar project to China off Jaffna, plan to terminate the 35-year lease of Trincomalee Oil Tank Farms to India — are troubling. Still, the Rajapaksas have called India ‘the family’, the rest as ‘friends’ and elaborated its ‘India First’ foreign policy which was earlier reliance on New Delhi for security and Beijing for development.
It is against this background that India abstained from voting at Geneva. On March 14, President Rajapaksa had called Prime Minister Modi for India’s help to defeat the resolution with Foreign Minister Dinesh Gunawardene, speaking to his counterpart S Jaishankar earlier. But the most active solicitor of support was Colombage. On 13th Amendment, his views are in sync with the government, branding some Tamil leaders as leaning towards separatism. On January 15, senior Tamil National Alliance (TNA) leader R Sampanthan had said that Tamil parties had sought an international probe, including reference to the International Criminal Court, to investigate genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity
Last year, suddenly after five years, the Rajapaksas withdrew from UNHRC 30/1 under which it had agreed to time-bound investigation into the war crimes that took place during the war. The first draft (January 22) was damning and included ‘warnings of militarisation of new government (28 serving or retired or military or intelligence officials in key posts), reversal of important constitutional safeguards, political obstruction of accountability, exclusionary rhetoric and intimidation of civil society and use of anti-terrorism laws’. UNHRC’s Michelle Bachelet said the ‘present government was proactively obstructing investigations into past crimes to prevent accountability and that this has had a devastating effect on families seeking truth and justice’.
The second draft (February 19) called on Colombo to implement 30/1 from which it pulled out and two roll-on resolutions — 34/1 and 40/1. The present resolution goes back to an agreement at Kandy on May 26, 2009, between UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon and Mahinda Rajapaksa
The President appointed a Sri Lankan judge and a three-member presidential inquiry which produced a report called Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission of March 2012. While the government noted that human rights violations took place during the war, it declined to accept the report. In 2015, with a national government in place, Foreign Minister Mangala Samaraweera accepted to host international judges in hybrid courts. But both President Sirisena and Prime Minister Wickeremesinghe chickened out. Heads or tails, Sri Lanka refused to budge on allowing international investigations into alleged war crimes
The Truth, Justice and Reconciliation conundrum is essentially stuck around missing persons. These relate to the 13,784 people who had surrendered on May 19, 2009. Gotabaya had disclosed while he was campaigning for president, that they were subsequently rehabilitated, re-integrated and given employment. The 13,784 figure he used to reveal as Defence Secretary during the annual army seminars at Colombo after 2011 that I attended. But this figure is probably different from the number that actually surrendered. One month into office, President Rajapaksa told the UN Resident Coordinator in Colombo that ‘thousands who were reportedly missing were actually dead’. There are still hundreds of former LTTE cadres in jail without trial for more than 10 years.
India had pitched its case in a post-conflict Sri Lanka at the UN on two pillars — sovereignty of Sri Lanka and the rights of Tamils under 13A. This new strategic formulation for the first time equated the political aspirations of Tamils with recognising the territorial integrity of Sri Lanka drawn from the 1987 Indo-Lanka bilateral agreement which involved the sacrifice of 1,200 Indian soldiers who prevented the break-up of Sri Lanka. That above all and the active Indian assistance in defeating LTTE in 2009, overriding domestic Tamil politics, was the litmus test. Colombo and New Delhi must reconcile and realign on 13th Amendment without delay and move on.
India must also recall the political and diplomatic successes of 1971 under Indira
Tough as nails: Indira Gandhi’s government achieved the integration of diverse elements to convert challenges into opportunities. File photo
Vivek Katju
Ex-secretary, Ministry of External Affairs
PM Modi will participate in the 50th anniversary of Bangladesh’s independence on March 26 in Dhaka as the guest of honour. This is only fitting because of the role played by India under the leadership of PM Indira Gandhi in assisting Bangladesh in its war of independence in 1971 to end West Pakistani colonialism. The focus in Dhaka will be on the courage and resilience of the Bangladeshi people who overcame the genocidal onslaught of the Pakistani army against its then co-nationals. It will also be on Sheikh Mujibur Rehman whose birth centenary Bangladesh is currently celebrating. He embodied the aspirations of the then East Pakistani people for equality within Pakistan, and as that prospect became remote, for throwing off the West Pakistani yoke.
Amidst all the celebrations, will Indira Gandhi’s leadership be recalled, and if so, to what extent and in what terms? Also, later in the year, as India marks the golden jubilee of its victory in the 1971 War, how will it honour the leader who led the country with skill and iron determination to victory against very great odds? Her later mistakes cannot take away her 1971 achievement.
Whenever people look back to the events of 1971, their attention is claimed by the success of the Indian Army or shifts to the controversies generated by the Simla Agreement of July 1972. Consequently, the political and diplomatic successes of 1971, which provided the foundation for military achievements, have fallen into the crevices of public memory. However, Indian diplomacy leading to the Simla Agreement and Indira Gandhi’s specific role in its conclusion is evaluated—and certainly criticism can be levelled on many aspects of the agreement and the assumptions that led to it— should be segregated from the political and diplomatic management of 1971.
But first, how should the events of 1971 be evaluated in strategic terms, both on account of their challenges and opportunities? After the trauma of the Partition with its attendant dislocation, the next strategic challenge the country faced was in 1965 when Pakistan sought to wrest J&K. Did the extended 1971 drama pose a greater threat to the nation’s interests as compared to the 1965 Pakistani aggression? Since 1971, has the country been confronted by an overall threat that can compare to that difficult year? Howsoever strategic experts view these different situations, there is little doubt that 1971 was a supremely difficult year which required flawless coordination of all aspects of national power. These included military and diplomatic and also political to ensure unity and social cohesion as the country navigated the enormous obstacles that came its way.
Indira Gandhi’s government achieved the integration of all these diverse elements to convert challenges into opportunities. Indian actions led to basic changes in the map of the Indian subcontinent. The independence of Bangladesh also eroded the view that religion by itself can be a lasting glue for nationalism, thereby destroying the two-nation theory.
The December 1970 Pakistani election shocked the Pakistan army and West Pakistan political elite because Sheikh Mujib’s party, the Awami League, secured 167 of the 169 seats of East Pakistan and had sufficient numbers to form the federal government. The army led by the then dictator and President Gen Yahya Khan and the West Pakistan political leaders were determined to prevent this from happening, for they feared that Mujib would end their domination by insisting on provincial autonomy and the end of exploitation of the country’s eastern wing. When negotiations failed, the army began an unrestrained massacre of the Bangladeshi people on the night of March 25, 1971. It especially targeted the Hindu population. Refugees started to pour into India, and by the time armed hostilities began in December, around one crore had come into India. It was an intolerable strain.
India had gone through political turmoil with a split in the Congress in 1969 and elections called by Indira Gandhi were held in March, which she swept. She was sworn in as PM for a fresh term, only around 10 days before the Pakistan army’s crackdown in Bangladesh. As the refugees began to cross over, people demanded military intervention to stop the slaughter. The military made it clear that it would take months to prepare and would prefer to wait till November, when the weather would permit quick and decisive action to liberate Bangladesh. Diplomatic work was also necessary to prepare the ground for the intervention, especially as it became clear that the US was against the break-up of Pakistan
India’s diplomatic efforts were directed at cultivating western liberal opinion, which, when facts were brought to its attention, was appalled at the Pakistani action. But western governments and Islamic countries remained unmoved, for they wanted the preservation of Pakistan’s territorial integrity. President Richard Nixon and his NSA, Henry Kissinger, remained hostile to India. China, too, made threatening noises. The top leaderships of both countries were personally grateful to Yahya Khan for his role in enabling their initial contacts in secrecy.
In this international situation, India took the precaution of securing Soviet support through a friendship treaty which implicitly ensured its support against aggression. Indira Gandhi did not let India’s commitment to non-alignment to inhibit the demands of realism. She also gave full support and shelter to Bangladeshi leaders who set up a government in exile, and also the Mukti Bahini that launched a resistance campaign.
Indira Gandhi’s speech in Parliament, announcing the surrender of Pakistani forces and declaring ‘Dhaka is the free capital of a free country’, is one of the shining moments of the Republic’s history, as is the iconic photograph of Pakistan General, AAK Niazi, signing the instrument of surrender.
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