Page 303 - Leadership in the Indian Army

battalions, i.e., 1 Sikh, 1 Madras, 6 Rajputana Rifles and 3 Garhwal, during
various stages of the battle. It also had a squadron of 7 Cavalry equipped
with armoured cars, and two batteries of artillery guns. The brigade

commenced operations from Handwara on 18 May 1948, and by 20 May
had taken Chowkibal. The next day, the 10,000-foot high Nastachun Pass
had been captured, and by 23 May Tithwal was in Indian hands. In five
days, 163 Brigade had advanced 65 kilometres, killed 67 of the enemy and
taken many prisoners. It was poised to advance to Muzaffarabad, which was
just 30 kilometres away, when operations were halted on orders from Army
HQ following the United Nations resolution. This severely jolted the morale

and spirits of the soldiers, who were all set to drive the invaders out of the
Kashmir valley.
The loss of Tithwal was also a severe blow to the Pakistanis, who reacted
violently and launched several counter-attacks to recapture the feature.
These attacks were supported by heavy shelling and resulted in many
casualties. There were also several individual acts of bravery, including that

of Company Havildar Major Piru Singh of 6 Rajputana Rifles, who was
posthumously awarded the Param Vir Chakra, the country’s highest award
for gallantry. Bakshi played a prominent part in the battle, and displayed
exceptional gallantry and leadership, for which he was awarded the Vir
Chakra. This was remarkable, because Bakshi was a staff officer in the
Brigade HQ, and was not commanding troops. Unlike commanders, staff
officers rarely get a chance to display gallantry on the battlefield. The fact

that he was recommended for the Vir Chakra and won the decoration was
truly a brilliant achievement.
Shortly afterwards, Bakshi notched up another feat that resulted in his
being awarded the MacGregor Memorial Medal. This medal was instituted
in 1888 in memory of Major General Sir Charles Metcalfe MacGregor, the
founder of the United Service Institution of India. It is awarded every year

for the best military reconnaissance or journey of exploration or survey in
remote areas of India. However, it is awarded only if the journey or
expedition is exceptional, and in case there have been none, no award is
given that year. In fact, the award has been given only about a dozen times
during the 50 years since Independence. Bakshi was assigned the task of
carrying out an important strategic military reconnaissance of certain areas
in Tibet. Dressed as a Buddhist monk, Bakshi went from Nathu La into the

Chumbi valley, and then to Gyantse and Lhasa. He covered a distance of