Page 119 - Leadership in the Indian Army

House in November 1954, when Yashwant had turned seven, and the author
was a little over 10 years old. Yashwant’s father had just returned from
Korea and brought back a lot of toys and a huge balloon, the likes of which

had never been seen before.
Thorat was promoted Brigadier in 1946, and appointed Secretary of the
National War Memorial Committee, which had been formed to establish a
military academy on the lines of the United States Military Academy at
West Point. At this time, various proposals were being discussed regarding
the construction of a suitable war memorial to commemorate the services of
Indian soldiers during World War II. Funds were readily available, as the

Government of Sudan had donated £100,000 to the Viceroy of India in
1941, as its contribution to the war effort. The credit for suggesting that the
memorial take the form of a training institution, rather than a building or
archway, like the War Memorial built after World War I (now called India
Gate), goes to Brigadier A.A. Rudra, who was then Director for Morale at
the General Headquarters (GHQ) in Delhi. This suggestion was accepted by

the C-in-C, Field Marshal Auchinleck, who wrote to Lord Wavell, the
Viceroy, recommending the establishment of a military academy on the
lines of the United States Military Academy at West Point, where basic
training would be imparted not only to the army, but also to the naval and
air force cadets. He felt that this would make an excellent national
memorial, and his advice was accepted.
The National War Memorial Committee was set up on 2 May 1945 with

Auchinleck as Chairman and Dr Amar Nath Jha, the Vice Chancellor of
Allahabad University, as the Vice Chairman. The other members were the
Chief of General Staff; Flag Officer Commanding Indian Navy; Secretary
of the Government of India War Department; Educational Adviser to the
Government; Sir Mirza Ismail, Prime Minister of Jaipur State; Rao Raja
Narpat Singh of Jodhpur; Mian Afzal Husain of Punjab; Mr William Xavier

Mascarenhas of the College of Engineering, Poona; and Mr A.E. Foot,
Principal of the Doon School. The Secretary’s post was initially occupied
by Lieutenant Colonel P.C. Gupta, but he was later replaced by Brigadier
S.P.P. Thorat.
While the committee held formal meetings every two months, informal
discussions were held more frequently. The Prime Minister, Pandit
Jawaharlal Nehru, took keen interest in the project and usually attended the

meetings. One of the most important decisions taken by the committee was