Page 14 - Seniors Today - Vol1 Issue 3

in London had asked the Defence Ministry in Patiala, the Sikh troops celebrated it in a big
Delhi to restrain Indian war correspondents
from reporting “cock-and-bull stories”. The
world did not seem to believe that the Indian
Army could operate tanks at those heights and
under those conditions! We continued to use
“camouflaged jeeps” for tanks till liberation of
Kargil on 24th November: when the whole story
was published and it established the facts for all
time.
Unfortunately, the weather turned very poor
with snow and rain. Some saw this as a silver
lining as it gave time to revise and go over plans
in a much more detailed way. Some of the earlier
attempts were wasted due to hasty operations
without proper planning, and more importantly
adjustment of troops to the harsh weather and
height. Finally on November 1, the orders were
given to start the ascent to the main pass from
Baltal. Eleven tanks were used for the first time
ever on such difficult terrain, so much so that
in the final stretch they were winched up. Led
admirably by a young Capt Jamwal, the tanks
finally reached the flatter grounds of the pass
and Gumri Basin. The guns opened up and with
the element of surprise and superior firepower
in the favour of the 7th Cavalry, by mid-
afternoon the enemy had abandoned their posts.
The tanks fired and completely destroyed the
foxholes made by the enemy. Although the tanks
were able to break through Zoji-La in one day
(November 1) they got held up in the next week
at the two other places, Machoi and Matayan.
Finally our troops were held up below the
Batkundi Ridge because of the enemy having
taken strong positions overlooking valley
below. We were stuck there for almost one
week. Surprise attacks around Anant Ridge and
Brown Hill were mounted by Indian troops.
Senior Generals of Indian forces spent the final
night with the troops under open skies, which
boosted the troops’ courage and camaraderie.
Then, on November 14 the tanks and the troops
were able to push through to Drass (reportedly
the second coldest inhabited place in the
world). Next day was Guru Nanak Dev’s birth
anniversary and as the Indian troops were
led by soldiers of the 1st Rajinder Infantry of
14
way. A day later the GOC arrived along with
the press, and celebrations took place. That
night, Gen Thimaya was fiddling with his radio
set and he picked up a conversation between a
Pakistani Commander and one “Major Ishaq”
– perhaps a code name. Ishaq reported that he
had come into Drass the previous night, enjoyed
celebrations with the Sikh troops, visited his
hideout, collected all his papers and documents
and returned safely to Mushko valley, under
cover of darkness. Gen Thimaya highly
appreciated this daredevil feat of the Pakistani
officer.
Zoji La watershed, Nov 4, 1948
One breakthrough after another eventually
led to the liberation of Kargil, and the final
linkup with Leh garrison happened. In the
Nubra valley too, the infiltrators were pushed
back. It is pertinent to point out that without
the decisive and dramatic battle of Zoji-La, the
map of Kashmir would be without Kargil, most
of Ladakh, and who knows perhaps the Valley
itself. November 1948 must be remembered
as the month when India reclaimed a lot of
lost ground and will surely be known for the
Battle of Zoji-La amongst many other important
battles.The tank breakthrough of November
1948 in Kashmir was an epoch-making event
and opened a new chapter in the military
history of the world. Never before had armoured
vehicles like tanks, armoured cars etc. operated
at such heights and in such trying climatic
conditions.
The tank manufacturers had never envisaged