Page 96 - Leadership in the Indian Army

evacuated. No aircraft had ever landed at Leh before, but if the town was to
be saved, this was the only answer. Thimayya went to Air Commodore
Mehar Singh, who was commanding the No 1 (Operations) Group of the

IAF, and asked if he was willing to take the risk. ‘Baba’ Mehar, as the fiery
Sikh was known, agreed to fly in a Dakota for a trial landing. Thimayya
decided to accompany him and on 24 May 1948 they landed at Leh, writing
their names into the history books of aviation. The local people, who had
never seen an aeroplane before, thought it was a ‘celestial horse’ and
brought grass to feed the animal! Needless to say, Leh was saved and troops
were flown in regularly during the next few days. It also did wonders for

the morale of the civilian population in Leh, who were spared the fate of
towns like Baramulla, Mirpur and Skardu.
The capture of Zojila was another event that made Thimayya famous. He
assigned the task of capturing the 16,000-foot-high pass to 77 Parachute
Brigade that was being commanded by Brigadier K.L. Atal. Operation
DUCK commenced on 3 September 1948, but failed due to heavy snow and

the strong defences built by the enemy, who held the heights overlooking
the pass. A second attempt, accompanied by heavier artillery support, was
made on 14 September 1948, but this too failed, with heavy casualties.
There was considerable disappointment and the troops were disheartened.
Winter was fast approaching, and soon the pass would be closed, making
vehicular movement impossible. Time was at a premium, and it was
necessary to try different methods to achieve success.

On 23 September 1948, a meeting was held at Srinagar. Apart from
Cariappa, who presided, it was attended by Thimayya, Shrinagesh and Atal.
After analysing the reasons for failure, it was decided that a flat trajectory
weapon was required to neutralise enemy defences, while the infantry was
assaulting up the slopes. Due to heavy overhead cover air and artillery
would have little effect, and the defenders could bring down withering fire

on the attackers. It was then decided to use tanks during the attack on
Zojila. It is not clear who came up with the idea, though Thimayya is
credited with the suggestion, which Cariappa approved. Lieutenant Colonel
Rajinder Singh ‘Sparrow’, who was commanding 7 Cavalry, was called in
and consulted before the decision was finalised. Cariappa also decided to
change the name of the operation from DUCK to BISON.
A squadron of Stewart tanks of 7 Cavalry was moved from Jammu to

Srinagar, and then to Baltal. Many of the bridges had to be reinforced or