May 31, 1999
|
|
|
|
KARGIL ASSAULT Nasty Surprise Pakistan-backed infiltrators occupy snowbound heights overlooking the Srinagar-Leh highway near Kargil, triggering massive response by the army. By Ramesh Vinayak
Trouble began on May 5, when two army patrols in the snow-clad Yaldor area in the Kargil region, spotted a group of men, apparently from Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (POK). Taken by surprise, they immediately reported the sighting because the area has never previously been used by Pakistan to push militants and mercenaries into India. It was, in Army parlance, an "unheld area"-an inhospitable region along the LoC abandoned by both the sides during the harsh winters. The larger patrol party which went to cross-check was in for a nasty shock: it was ambushed and lost four soldiers. Firing continued for nearly a week before the army gained the true measure of the situation After an aerial surveillance on May 12, the army realised that the incursion was far more serious than it had assumed. Around 500 heavily armed infiltrators had occupied at least 35 well-fortified positions atop the ridges facing Dras, Kargil, Batalik and the Mushko valley. They were being provided fire cover by the Pakistani artillery, which had begun a systematic bombardment of National Highway 1A that connects Leh to Srinagar-in the Dras-Kargil region. Says a security official in Srinagar: "The fortification of their positions and the camouflage with snow rakes indicate that their motive is more than infiltration." They seemed to have a specific plan and had stocked adequate supplies of arms and ammunition and ration. "They are not the usual hit-and-run infiltrators. The group appeared to be on a suicide mission," says Pal. The army took no chances. It moved on a war footing to deal with the situation. According to estimates, nearly 30,000 troops were moved into the Kargil-Dras area along with special forces dropped on the high ridges by helicopter. The army relocated its fieldguns to the war-time positions and flew in reserve weapons including 130 mm field guns, howitzers, 122 mm multi-barrel rocket launchers and heavy mortars. The aim was to surround the infiltrators and choke off their supplies even while building up Indian strength to launch assaults. "Our strategy has been to bottle up the surviving men and dislodge them piecemeal," says Major-General P.P.S. Bindra of the Northern Command. Troops aided by artillery and machine-gun fitted Chetak helicopters launched attacks. By May 18, the army claimed that it had neutralised the infiltrators in Batalik area north-east of Kargil and moved to clear them from the rest of the heights. The accompanying pounding of civilian areas by the Pakistani army led to panic migration from the Kargil and Dras areas. While Dras town and 11 villages were emptied, more than 50 per cent of Kargil and five villages around it took shelter in Sanku valley. Chief Minister Farooq Abdullah flew to Kargil on May 18 to reassure panic-stricken residents. The audacious Pakistani plan caught the army unawares because, according to Srinagar-based intelligence officials, it ignored intelligence reports suggesting that infiltration had begun in mid-April. The intruders worked to a plan. From Gurez in the north-eastern edge of the Kashmir Valley to Turtok near the Siachen area, the LoC moves along a vast high-altitude terrain which is largely uninhabited. By sending in infiltrators to occupy the posts in the "unheld area" before the Indians returned, the Pakistanis clearly caught the security forces offguard. The intrusion is also a pointer to what lies in store for Kashmir. Intelligence reports say at least 400 infiltrators have already sneaked into the Valley via the Kupwara and Rajouri sectors. The manner in which the infiltrators have fought pitched battles indicates a sustained Pakistani effort to boost the dying militancy in Kashmir. "Pakistan is itching for a limited war but we will not fall into this trap," says Pal. Little wonder the army tried its best to underplay the battle in Kargil, saying it's a localised flare-up. Delhi too has played down the event that appears to be more than a border skirmish. Defence Minister George Fernandes assessed the situation during a visit to the Siachen area last week. Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee spent the better part of a working day last week at Army Headquarters' operations room. But, there has been no diplomatic movement and the Ministry of External Affairs has not commented on the issue, let alone act on it. The move to play down the Kargil firing may be ill-advised. The latest flare-up represents the first time since the ill-fated Operation Gibraltar of 1965 that Pakistan has attempted to send in infiltrators unsupported by locals to occupy Indian territory. Then it had led to war. In the past three years even though insurgency in the Valley is waning, Pakistan seems determined to raise the level of militancy there by pushing in mercenaries. Given the seriousness of the past month's events, it is perhaps time for India to reassess its diplomatic and military strategy. |
|
Issue Contents | Write to us | Subscriptions | Syndication BUSINESS TODAY | INDIA TODAY PLUS | COMPUTERS TODAY © Living Media India Ltd |
 |
 |
Through most of
May, even as national dailies focused on the heat wave, Jessica Lall's murder and the
Congress crisis, a deadly, slow-motion battle was being fought far away amidst the
snow-capped ranges overlooking the Dras river near Kargil. In a series of bitterly fought
actions, Indian troops defied hostile weather and Pakistani shelling to evict 500
infiltrators from the Indian side of the Line of Control (LoC). The Pakistani action
"was only a little bit short of naked aggression", charged Lt-General Krishan
Pal, GOC, 15th Corps in Srinagar. He conceded, however, that in reply the army had to
conduct "one of the biggest anti-militancy operations in recent years". By May
20, the force had lost 15 soldiers, 30 were injured and about 40 infiltrators were killed
in the operation which is still on. 
