Page 287 - Leadership in the Indian Army

the Indian Army’s finest achievements. The lightning campaign, lasting just
14 days, resulted in the total annihilation of Pakistani forces and a
magnificent victory for India. There were many acts of valour and fortitude

in the face of adversity. Units and sub-units fought with courage, dash and
elan, and there was not a single reported incident of loss of morale or
cohesion. More than individual or collective gallantry, the unique—and
decisive—feature of the campaign was the quality of military leadership.
Among the leaders who made a significant contribution to the success of
the operation was Sagat Singh. In fact, it was in 1971 that Sagat displayed,
for the last time, his skills as a tactician, and conclusively proved his worth

as a combat leader par excellence.
The task of liberating Bangladesh, then called East Pakistan, was given to
Lieutenant General Jagjit Singh Aurora, GOC-in-C Eastern Command. He
had under him 2 Corps, commanded by Lieutenant General (later General)
T.N. Raina; 33 Corps, commanded by Lieutenant General M.L. Thapan; 4
Corps, commanded by Lieutenant General Sagat Singh; and 101

Communication Zone Area, commanded by Major General G.S. Gill. The
terrain in Bangladesh was riverine, which usually favours the defender. The
rivers were interspersed with rice fields and marshes, which made cross-
country movement very difficult, especially after the monsoons. Major
troop movements had to be confined to the roads, and ferries or bridges
over the rivers, if defended or destroyed, could hold up advancing columns
for long periods. Inland water transport was also used for transportation of

goods. Pakistan had three infantry divisions, comprising about 42 battalions
of regular troops, and five squadrons of armour for the defence of the
region and over 2,000 kilometres of border. Lieutenant General A.A.K.
Niazi, who was in charge of the Eastern Command of the Pakistan Army,
had appreciated that the Indian advance would have to be along the major
road axes, and had deployed his troops accordingly. Strong points had been

created along the likely axes, and it was visualised that unless these were
cleared, the advancing enemy could make little headway. This proved to be
a costly mistake.
The territory in East Pakistan was divided by major riverine obstacles into
four distinct parts. The first part comprised all territory east of the Meghna
river, including Sylhet, Brahmanbaria, Comilla, Noakhali, Chittagong and
Cox’s Bazaar; the second comprised the territory between the rivers Jamuna

(Brahmaputra) to the east and Padma (Ganges) to the west, including