35 years on, Army officially pays tribute to Indian soldiers killed in Sri Lanka peace keeping operations

About 35 years after the last troops of the Indian Peace Keeping Force (IPKF) stepped off Sri Lankan soil, the Army, for the first time officially paid tributes to those who had laid down their lives in the three-year operation, with Chief of Army Staff, Gen Upendra Dwivedi laying a wreath at the National War Memorial in New Delhi on Tuesday.

It was on November 25, 1987, that Major Ramaswamy Parameswaran of the 8th Battalion of the Mahar Regiment made the supreme sacrifice during Operation Pawan, the most significant operation undertaken by the PPKF in Sri Lanka. He was decorated with Param Vir Chakra (PVC), the highest award for gallantry and was the sole IPKF recipient of this award.

Sri Lanka was India's first major overseas military campaign post-Independence. While it is considered to be tactically successful, albeit as a heavy human cost, the political, diplomatic and intelligence aspects continue to be debated. By the time the last Indian troops withdrew from Sri Lanka, the force had lost 1,171 troops with another about 3,500 being wounded.

Over the years, veterans have been holding private remembrance ceremonies to honour the war dead of India's military intervention in Sri Lanka. For long, veterans have been campaigning for official recognition and commemoration of the Sri Lanka operations.

The IPKF was deployed in Sri Lanka from July 1987 to March 1990, under a bilateral accord to disarm Tamil militant groups, particularly the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) and end the civil war in that country.

Initially envisioned as a quick and low intensity operation with little armed engagements, it quickly escalated into intense combat after strong resistance from militant groups, resulting in grueling battles involving jungle warfare, urban assaults and counter-insurgency operations and throwing up some hard lessons.

Operation Pawan was the code name for the IPKF campaign to take control of the Jaffna peninsula in northern Sri Lanka from the LTTE and to enforce its disarmament as a part of the Indo-Sri Lanka Accord. In brutal fighting lasting about three weeks, the IPKF took control of the Jaffna Peninsula from the heavily armed LTTE, something that the Sri Lankan Army had earlier tried but failed to do.

As part of the operation, Major Ramaswamy Parameswaran of the 8th Battalion of the Mahar Regiment, was returning from a search operation in Sri Lanka, late at night on November 25, 1987, when his column was ambushed by a group of militants.

“With cool presence of mind, he encircled the militants from the rear and charged into them, taking them completely by surprise. During the hand-to-hand combat, a militant shot him in the chest. Undaunted, Major Parameswaran snatched the rifle from the militant and shot him dead. Gravely wounded, he continued to give orders and inspired his command till he breathed his last. Five militants were killed and three rifles and two rocket launchers were recovered and the ambush was cleared,” the citation for his award reads.

“Major Ramaswamy Parameswaran displayed the most conspicuous gallantry and thought nothing of dying at his post,” the citation adds. He was the only PVC recipient of the campaign. In addition over 250 decorations, including three Maha Vir Chakra, the second highest gallantry award, were conferred on IPKF personnel.

Operating under the aegis of the Southern Command, the IPKF deployment peaked at around 100,000 troops involving the Army’s 4 Mountain Division, 36 Infantry Division, 54 Infantry Division and 57 Infantry Division along with para-military forces as well as Special Forces, Air Force and Navy elements.

Jaffna, Palaly, Vavuniya, Trincomalee, Batticaloa, Ampara and Mannar were along areas in northern and eastern parts of Sri Lanka where the IPKF was deployed.

While Indian involvement in the Sri Lankan civil strife had been continuing at the political and diplomatic level since the tenure of Indira Gandhi as prime minister, the induction of the IPKF had been preceded by the first overt military operation, Poomalai, when five IAN An-32 transport aircraft escorted by Mirage 2000 flew over Jaffna to airdrop 25 tons of supplies in June 1987.

Operation Viraat, Operation Trishul, Operation Checkmate, Operation Main Road, Operation Tiger Hunt and Operation Thrividra are among other major anti-insurgency operations and strike missions undertaken by the IPKF in different areas. Sri Lanka was also the first combat exposure for the Navy’s newly formed Special Forces unit, the Indian Marine Special Force, now known as the Marine Commando Force.