It is my honour to join the grateful nation Bharat in paying my sincerest homage, salutations and tribute to the Fallen Heroes of the Kargil conflict. Twenty-five years of a conflict which took place in the year 1999 that still remains itched in the conscience of the citizens and continues to inspire a generation of Indians. More importantly, India as a nation woke up from the slumber and entered 21st century with courage, conviction and assertion among the comity of the nations.
The 25th anniversary of the Kargil War commemorates the valour, bravery, tenacity and gallant action of the Indian Army. Indian troops fought on the snowy peaks of Dras, Batalik, Mushkoh, Tololing, Kaksar and Turtok and pushed back Pakistani intruders in the most challenging combat conditions. The Indian soldiers and young officers displayed unparalleled valour and indomitable spirit despite heavy casualties. The Kargil war that took place from 3 May 1999 to 26 July 1999 was named Operation Vijay by the Indian Army. During this war, 527 brave soldiers made the supreme sacrifice and 1363 soldiers were wounded in fierce fighting. The Indian Army repelled the last consignment of Pakistani intruders on 26 July 1999 and recaptured the entire area. Therefore, 26th July is celebrated as Vijay Diwas by a grateful nation in honour of this outstanding military victory.
Situation prior to 1999
It is important to understand the state and morale if the Indian Army prior to 1999. The Indian Army was going through a serious resource crunch and virtually everything needed for warfighting was in short supply. In 1998-99, as a senior Major rank officer, I was Second in Command of my battalion in the super high altitude desert terrain of North Sikkim. Here the heights of the mountains and vagaries of nature including extreme cold climate is akin to Siachen Glacier. Surprisingly we did not even have special clothing for such terrain. The vehicles were far and few and the unit struggled with basic equipment needed to operate in such areas. Given the equipment readiness state of the Army, be it in the Northern borders or Eastern borders, and the inclination of the higher leadership, it was not easy to fulfill all the operational tasks at the unit/sub unit level.
During the Kargil War
After the initial setbacks, the Indian Army troops, particularly at the sub unit level displayed exemplary bravery and raw courage in capturing nearly vertical cliffs occupied by a well-entrenched enemy. Some spectacular battles of Tololing, Tiger Hill and Batalik were fought with sheer grit, guts and raw courage. The Army fought with what it had and yet succeeded against multiple odds and severe challenges of terrain, inadequate preparation time and huge expectations.
Comparison with Pakistan Army
The intrusions were planned by the wily Pakistan Army Chief General Pervez Musharraf and he kept even the Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif out of the loop in the decision-making matrix. It is only when the war escalated that he was informed but by then it was too late. Contrast it with the Indian Army which has dutifully acted under the political leadership of the day, remaining totally apolitical in its outlook and conduct. Once Prime Minister Vajpayee gave the go ahead, Indian Army rose to the challenge. Another high point of the operations was that the Indian Army was ordered to clear own positions and not to cross the LC (Line of Control) opposite the Pak Occupied Kashmir (POK). Even the Indian Air Force was employed in the last week of May 1999, indicating great amount of restraint on part of the Indian political and military leadership, which was even praised by the US. Under all these challenges and testing times, the victory in less than three months is nothing but spectacular.
The Legacy
Kargil War was the first major war which virtually was telecast live to the Indians. A lot of journalists did a fantastic job of covering the war and related events, sometimes even at a risk to their lives. The Indians were united in supporting the armed forces and shed tears with every fallen hero wrapped in the tricolours. It also led to a sense of patriotism amongst the proud Indians not witnessed in the decades before. In addition, the war also highlighted the sterling contribution of the Artillery and the brave gunners.
The Indian Armed Forces quickly realised their deficiencies in arms, ammunition and equipment and undertook steps on war footing to improve the battle readiness state. With a proactive Defence Minister in George Fernandez, the Armed Forces quickly mobilised after the dastardly attack on the Indian Parliament on 13 December 2001. Indian Army carried out the largest mobilisation of troops along the western borders with Pakistan which was called Operation Parakram that lasted from December 2001 to October 2002. Having taken part in this challenging operation, I can say with conviction that we would have given a severe beating to Pakistan. The political leadership once again exercised restraint but we as a nation emerged more confident of taking on our adversaries. It is my belief that the decline of Pakistan as a nation state commenced because of severe drain on their economy post Operation Parakram which they are yet to recover. In hindsight, we as nation owe so much to the Brave Hearts and Fallen Heroes of Operation Vijay.
The Kargil War also brought out the deficiencies in the human resource management in the Armed Forces. Based on the recommendations of Ajai Vikram Singh Committee (AVSC) report, both the officer cadre and troops benefitted immensely. Some assured career progression for all ranks was built in the service profile which raised the morale of uniformed fraternity. The age of Commanding Officers came down and even today it has stood the test of time. I was fortunate to drive the change in the human resource policies whilst being posted in the prestigious Military Secretary Branch of the Indian Army which looks after the career management of the officer cadre.
The Lessons
The key lessons from the conflict came out from the Kargil Review Committee (KRC) headed by brilliant strategist K. Subrahmanyam. The strategic recommendations of the KRC have shaped the current force structure, organisation and equipping profile of the Indian Armed Forces. But a time has come to review the strategic affairs, particularly to prepare a generation of politicians more attuned to matters military.
At the macro level, creation of the Defence Intelligence Agency (DIA) and Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) has been realised and these are progressing satisfactorily. A large number of recommendations are still pending with the bureaucracy and have to pushed ahead, bypassing the turf wars.
The strategic intelligence is still a cause of concern. While a large number of organisations have come up, there is little coordination, possibly because of one man upmanship tendencies. More importantly, we have to fix accountability in case of intelligence failure, even on the top leadership. The country can ill afford Kargil 2.0.
The conflict also brought out lack of synergy between the Army and the Air Force. While there is much better synergy amongst the Army, Navy and the Air Force now, a lot of ground has to be covered to achieve the true sense of jointness. Theatre Commands is a good idea but meeting of the hearts amongst three services is essential for its success.
Conclusion
Kargil War in a way redeemed Indian Army after the debacle of 1962 war. Indian Army rose to the challenge and flushed out the Pakistani intruders, something it could not do in the war against the Chinese. The sacrifice of our Fallen Heroes Kargil War clearly shook the patriotic conscience of the nation and our gallant soldiers and young officers proved that it is the man behind the weapon who delivers victory, even at the cost of making a supreme sacrifice in the cause of the nation. In case of combat arms of the Army, it means fighting for the regiment and its ethos. Therefore, while deciding the intake pattern of our troops, the aspect of regimentation has to remain paramount at all times. The most befitting tribute to the Kargil warriors would be for all Indians to think alike and act with a uniformed spirit, in peace and in war.
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