Saluting ‘Defenders of Punjab’

Lt Gen Kamal Davar (retd)

Having adorned the uniform for 41 years with great pride, it was truly a memorable moment to be with the ‘Defenders of Punjab’ — the Vajra Corps — in Jalandhar, celebrating on March 1 their 70 years of matchless service to the nation. That I could attend the Raising Day celebrations of the new raising I had commanded, 86 Armoured Regiment at Nabha, made my trip all the more nostalgic.

Meeting battle-hardened veterans who have given their all to this nation is indeed an unforgettable experience which only a soldier can fathom.

Following the bloody Partition of India, the 1947-48 Kashmir war clearly brought out that to thwart Pakistani perfidy, many more units and formations were urgently required to be raised. Thus, the first Corps HQ to be raised in free India on March 1, 1950 was HQ 11 Corps at Ambala. Lt Gen Kulwant Singh was given the honour to do so which he did with aplomb and alacrity. In mid-1951, the Corps was moved and headquartered in Jalandhar cantonment where it is situated now in impeccable surroundings, a majestic yet modern headquarters building to carry out its task to defend Punjab.

Raising a Corps is no mean task as it involves marshalling, training and synergising the capabilities of diverse units and formations. 11 Corps (nicknamed Vajra Corps, attributable to its formation sign), over the years, did that with professional precision and operational effectiveness. Pakistan had unleashed ‘Operation Gibraltar’ in July-August 1965 to foment an uprising against the Indian state. That the loyal Kashmiris followed by the Indian Army decisively threw out the Pakistani infiltrators prompted the Pakistanis to launch ‘Operation Grand Slam’ on September 1, 1965 in the Akhnoor sector. As the Indian Army defended valiantly and successfully in J&K apart from the loss of Chhamb, Prime Minister Lal Bahadur Shastri gave his permission to our Army to open a new front and cross the international border in Punjab to teach the Pakistanis a lesson.

11 Corps mounted a three-pronged counter-offensive along the GT axis, the Burki axis and from the south to converge towards Lahore. The Corps met with substantial success getting across the formidable Ichogill Canal, and along the GT axis; 3 JAT under the dynamic leadership of Col Desmond Hayde had captured the border town of Dograi and entered Batanagar on the outskirts of Lahore. However, lack of complete information to the higher leadership prevented 11 Corps units to further their advance into enemy territory.

Meanwhile, the Pakistanis with their formidable Patton tanks counter-attacked south of Amritsar and made some gains in the Khem Karan sector. Notwithstanding being outnumbered and outgunned, units of 2nd Armoured Brigade withstood the enemy onslaught and created mayhem among the invading Pakistani tanks. The battle of Asal Uttar (later famously re-interpreted as the Right Response) became the graveyard of Pakistani tanks. It was here that Havildar Abdul Hamid destroyed four Pakistani tanks. The battles of Dograi, Burki, Asal Uttar bear testimony to the overall success of the Vajra Corps.

I too, as a young subaltern, was wounded in action in the Khem Karan sector and thus have an emotional connect with 11 Corps — no wonder that destiny later gave me the chance to be its 22nd Corps Commander from 1999 to 2002.

In the 1971 operations against Pakistan, 11 Corps troops once again exhibited themselves with valour and professionalism in the battles of Sehjra, Dera Baba Nanak and Burj-Fatehpur, among others.

As many veterans gathered at Jalandhar to commemorate the deeds of the Vajra Corps, the most solemn ceremony was held at the Vajra Shaurya Sthal to pay their tributes to those fallen in battle. Among those who attended were veteran corps commanders like former Army Chief Gen Ved Malik, Lt Gen BT Pandit and the elderly Mrs Gowrishanker, whose husband had won the Maha Vir Chakra in the 1965 ops. An event, immaculately organised by Lt Gen Sanjeev Sharma, the present Corps Commander, will be cherished by all.

The Vajra Corps, over the years, has truly lived up to its motto as the ‘Defenders of Punjab’.

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