No.

08/2019 AN INDIAN ARMY PUBLICATION August 2019

BATTLE OF HAJIPIR (INDO-PAK WAR 1965)

Major
Ranjit Singh DAyal,
PVSM, MVC

P
akistan’s forcible attempt to annex Kashmir was defeated when India, even though surprised by the
Pakistani offensive, responded with extraordinary zeal and turned the tide in a war, Pakistan thought
it would win. Assuming discontent in Kashmir with India, Pakistan sent infiltrators to precipitate
insurgency against India under ‘OPERATION GIBRALTAR’, followed by the plan to capture Akhnoor under
‘OPERATION GRAND SLAM’.
The Indian reaction was swift and concluded with the epic capture of the strategic Haji Pir Pass, located at a
height of 2637 meters on the formidable PirPanjal Range, that divided the Kashmir Valley from Jammu.
A company of 1 PARA led by Major (later Lieutenant General) Ranjit Singh Dayal wrested control of Haji
Pir Pass in Jammu & Kashmir, which was under the Pakistani occupation. The initial victory came after a 37-
hour pitched battle by the stubbornly brave and resilient troops. Major Dayal and his company accompanied by
an Artillery officer started at 1400 hours on 27 August. As they descended into the valley, they were subjected
to fire from the Western shoulder of the pass. There were minor skirmishes with the enemy, withdrawing from
Sank. Towards the evening, torrential rains covered the mountain with thick mist. This made movement and
direction keeping difficult. The men were exhausted after being in the thick of battle for almost two days. But
Major Dayal urged them to move on. On reaching the base of the pass, he decided to leave the track and climb
straight up to surprise the enemy. He and his men climbed the difficult hillside by night, carrying heavy loads
through the rain, often wading through knee deep water. At 0430 hours they hit the Uri-Poonch road. By 0600
hours they had arrived at the foot of the Pass. On coming under heavy fire, Major Dayal left the leading platoon
and the Artillery officer to engage the enemy and led the rest of his men from the right flank. They climbed the
Western shoulder of the Pass and then rolled down on the enemy unleashing heavy fire. The Pakistanis were
utterly surprised as they left their weapons and ran down the hill to escape. The contribution of the other four
Battalions of 68 Infantry Brigade namely 19 Punjab, 4 Rajput, 6 Jammu & Kashmir Rifles and 4 Sikh Light
Infantry are equally commendable in the Battle of Hajipir.
1 PARA captured the Pass by 1030 hours on 28 August. The Battalion not only captured the objective
allotted to it in the Phase 1 of the Brigade attack but exploited the success to complete the task allotted in Phase
2 of the attack. Major RS Dayal was awarded MahaVir Chakra for his gallantry and leadership in the battle.
1 PARA was awarded the ‘Battle Honour of Hajipir’ and the ‘Theatre Honour of Jammu and Kashmir’.

2 Baatcheet August 2019

 August 2019
From the Editor’s Desk
T
he constantly changing battlefield milieu
and rapid advancements in technology
brought to fore the challenges to training
and development of new concepts for our Army.
A need was hence felt to develop, formulate and
analyse concepts and doctrines at strategic and
operational levels for the emerging security
environment.
To meet the above requirements, Army
Training Command (ARTRAC) was raised at its
initial location in Mhow on 01 October 1991. The
raising was completed in March 1993 whereupon
it moved to its present location at Shimla in
November 1993.
ARTRAC ensures effectiveness of the
training, formulates concepts and doctrines of
warfare in the fields of strategy, operational art,
tactics, logistics, training and human resource
development, particularly in the light of emerging
security environment and introduction of nuclear
weapons in our subcontinent. ARTRAC acts as the
nodal agency for all institutional training in the
Army and evolves joint doctrines in conjunction
with other Services. A major restructuring took
place in September 2001 when REDFOR was
created from within the existing resources to study
concepts, doctrines and tactics of our adversaries
and apply these in two sided training and exercises
at Corps level and above.
The organisation of ARTRAC is today fully
responsive to meet the challenges of the futuristic
battlefield environment.
Baatcheet August 2019 We request our readers to send good quality, high resolution photographs for cover page of Baatcheet.
Battle of Hajipir (Indo-Pak War 1965)......................... 2
Chief’s Page................................................................ 4
In Focus...................................................................... 5
Snippets...................................................................6-7
ARTRAC Special...................................................... 8-9
J&K Diary................................................................. 10
North East Diary........................................................ 11
Communique............................................................. 12
Welfare and Empowerment ...................................... 13
Training..................................................................... 14
Sports and Adventure............................................... 15
Regimental Celebrations........................................... 16
CONTACT FOR QUERIES
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3
CHIEF’S PAGE

Senior General Min Aung Hlaing, Commander-in-

Chief of Defence Services of Myanmar called on and
interacted with General Bipin Rawat on 29 July 19

Rear Admiral M Shafiul Azam, Head of the Delegation

from National Defence College (NDC) of Bangladesh
called on and interacted with Chief of the Army Staff
on 23 July 19

Mr Kim Yu Geun, 1st Deputy Director of National

Security of the Republic of Korea called on and
interacted with General Bipin Rawat on 30 July 19

General Bipin Rawat, with the ‘Victory Flame’

at the Kargil War Memorial, Dras on the
occasion of 20th Anniversary of Kargil Vijay
Diwas

4 Baatcheet August 2019

In Focus

"20th Anniversary of victory in Operation Vijay has been

celebrated through out the Nation to evoke feeling of nationalism,
patriotism and to pay homage to the valiant soldiers."

Baatcheet August 2019 5

snippets
A Ceremonial Border Personnel Meeting (BPM) on the
occasion of 'People’s Liberation Army Day' was conducted on
01 August 19 at the Chushul-Moldo and DBO-TWD Meeting
Points in Eastern Ladakh respectively. The ceremonial BPM
was marked by saluting of National Flag by the delegation
members.
Command Hospital Air Force Bengaluru and Command
Hospital, Central Command, Lucknow were adjudged as the
Best and Second Best Command Hospital for the year 2018
respectively and were felicitated with the Raksha Mantri
Trophy on 16 July 19.
To celebrate the Nation's victory in Kargil and pay homage
to our bravehearts, Kargil Victory Run was organised from
Vijay Chowk to India Gate on 21 July 19. More than 6000
people participated in the run that included dignitaries and
children. 
6 Baatcheet August 2019
Lieutenant General Devraj Anbu,  Vice Chief of Army
Staff  called on and interacted with Lieutenant General
Carlos Humberto Loitey, Military Adviser for Peacekeeping
Operations at United Nation Headquarters, New York.
Konark Corps held a special ceremony in Jodhpur on 13 July
19 to announce the naming of road stretch in memory of
the war hero Padma Bhushan Late Lieutenant General Sagat
Singh (Retired), Param Vishisht Seva Medal to commemorate
the centenary celebrations of his birth anniversary.
Special Representative of the Secretary General  UNMISS 
Mr David Shearer inaugurated new United Nations Operating
Base established by INDBATT-1 at Kodok South Sudan. 
snippets
Vajra Corps on 12 July 19 inaugurated Vajra Veer Vatika –
an integrated motivational and recreational complex which
showcases the indomitable courage of Indian Army soldiers,
the saga of Sikh valour and victorious battles of Vajra Corps
in Jalandhar Cantonment.
Lieutenant General Ranbir Singh, Army Commander,
Northern Command and Mrs Kalpana Singh Dhatt, Regional
President, AWWA on 23 July 19 visited the Defence Institute
of High Altitude Research (DIHAR), an agro-animal R&D
Institute of the DRDO, located in the high altitude cold
desert trans-Himalayan region of Ladakh.
Capacity Building Tour for the youth of the remote villages of
Eastern Ladakh from Leh to Chandigarh, Dehradun & back
was organised under the aegis of Trishul Division. The aim
of the tour was to expose the students to the rich and diverse
culture of our country.  ensured.
Baatcheet August 2019
The Indian Army in step with government policies on
environmental protection launched an ecological initiative
by employing E-Cars for use of its officials in New Delhi
on 01 August 19 in partnership with Energy Efficiency
Services Ltd (EESL), a joint venture of Central Public Sector
Undertakings under Ministry of Power.
A unit of the Red Horns Division carried out flood relief
activities in Morigaon district of Assam. The aim of the
initiative was to provide essential commodities to the civil
population in the flood affected areas.
‘Go Green Niwaru’ drive was undertaken by Laungewala
Brigade at Niwaru Military Station on 21 July 19. General
Officer Commanding, Battle Axe Division initiated the drive
wherein 18000 trees will be planted & their survivability
7
 ARTRAC - aRMY tR
HISTORY
• Army Training Command (ARTRAC) was raised at its
initial location in Mhow on 01 October 91.
• The raising was completed in March 93.
• Relocated to Shimla in November 93.
• The First General Officer Commanding-in-Chief of
ARTRAC was Lieutenant General AS Kalkat. The present
Army Commander is Lieutenant General PC Thimayya.
VISION
To lead the Indian Army’s modernisation by strategic and
operational level doctrine, informatisation and wide based
knowledge skills.

ORGANISATION
• DOCTRINE BRANCH
- Develop doctrine
- Human resource development
- War gaming & simulations
• TRAINING BRANCH
- Institutionalised training through 32 illustrious
Category ‘A’ establishments.
- Nodal agency for issue of important policies and
training directives. ROLE
- Test bed for important trials, ideas & innovative To provide training support to the Army
concepts. in all its facets by development and
• RED FORCE (REDFOR) dissemination of concepts and doctrine,
Analyse strategic, operational, tactical and logistics overseeing institutional training and
capabilities of our potential adversaries and relevant facilitate formation training by provision of
aspects of sub-conventional Warfare. Red Force (REDFOR).

HIGHLIGHTS
• 32 illustrious Category ‘A’
Establishments.
• 3800 Foreign students trained
annually.
• 12054 Officers trained per year.
• 3793 Cadets pass out as commissioned
officers in a year.

8 Baatcheet August 2019

AINING cOMMAND
Category 'A' Establishments
INDIAN HIGH ALTITUDE JUNIOR LEADERS
MILITARY WARFARE SCHOOL ACADEMY
ACADEMY
SPECIAL
FORCES TRG SCHOOL ARMY MEDICAL CORPS CENTRE
GULMARG AND COLLEGE

REMOUNT VET CORPS

COLLEGE & CENTRE COLLEGE OF MATERIAL
MANAGEMENT
WARDEC DEHRADUN
NON COMMISSIONED OFFICERS
ARMY AIRBORNE NAHAN ACADEMY
TRAINING SCHOOL
DELHI MEERUT
OFFICERS TRAINING ACADEMY,
ARMY EDUCATION
BAREILLY
GAYA
CORPS CENTER AND AGRA
BINAGURI
SCHOOL LUCKNOW COUNTER INSURGENCY &
JUNGLE WARFARE SCHOOL
JABALPUR
ELECTRONICS AND BARODA GAYA
MECHANICAL
PACHMARHI
ENGINEERS SCHOOL ARMY AIR DEFENCE COLLEGE
MHOW GOPALPUR
ARMY WAR COLLEGE
KAMPTEE
DEVLALI INSTITUTE OF MIL LAW
MILITARY COLLEGE OF
TELECOMMUNICATION AHMEDNAGAR
ENGINEERING PUNE SECUNDERABAD
MIL COLLEGE OF EME

INFANTRY SCHOOL
BELGAUM SIMULATOR DEVELOPMENT
SCHOOL OF ARTILLERY, DIVISION
COMBAT ARMY AVIATION
TRAINING SCHOOL
BANGALORE
JUNIOR LEADER’S WING
COLLEGE OF MILITARY
ENGINEERING CHENNAI
ARMY SERVICE CORPS C & C
CORPS OF MIL POLICE CENTER
ARMY INSTITUTE OF PHYSICAL AND SCHOOL
TRAINING,
MIL INT TRAINING SCHOOL
AND DEPOT, ARMD COLLEGE CENTRE
INSTITUTE OF NATIONAL OFFICERS TRAINING ACADEMY
AND SCHOOL
INTEGRATION

Baatcheet August 2019 9

Jammu and Kashmir diary
Lieutenant General Ranbir Singh, General Officer
Commanding-in-Chief, Northern Command visited forward
locations in Eastern Ladakh on 24 July 19. He was briefed
on the security situation and operational readiness being
maintained in the sector by General Officer Commanding,
Trishul Division.
A trekking expedition to Tololing Top was undertaken by
2 Rajputana Rifles on 06 July 19 to honour and celebrate the
victory achieved 20 years ago in the Kargil War amidst harsh
terrain and weather conditions.  Kashmir Rifles to remember the golden moments of the
As part of the celebrations of Kargil Vijay Diwas a mega
cultural evening was organised at Leh on 23 July 19 by the
Fire and Fury Corps. The event was conducted at the Col
Sonam Wangchok, MVC Stadium and witnessed by many
civil and military dignitaries.
10
‘HOPE AND HARMONY’
A dead body from PoK was recovered from the Burzil Nala
close to Line of Control near Acchura village. On 10 July 19,
local Commanders at Gurez made sincere efforts and handed
over the body to the Pakistani counterpart.
To commemorate victory in the Kargil War as part of the
20th anniversary celebrations of Operation Vijay, a trekking
expedition to Batra Top was undertaken by 13 Jammu &
Battalion on 07 July 19.
As part of steps to ameliorate the conditions of unemployed
youth of Kashmir, Indian Army organised a recruitment rally
at Pattan from 10 to 16 July 19. 5000 candidates participated
in the rally reflecting the enthusiasm of the youth for a career
in Indian Army & serving the Nation.
Baatcheet August 2019
NORTH EAST DIARY ‘DEFENDERS of the East’

Black Cat Division  organised celebrations at Nathu La, to
commemorate the Birth Centenary of Padma Bhushan
Lieutenant General Sagat Singh, PVSM (Retired), known as
'Iron Man of Nathu La'. A bust of the General was installed
during the event at Sherathang.
The General Officer Commanding of Gajraj Corps, called on
the Chief Minister, Shri Sarbanda Sonowal at his office on
10 July 19. The GOC discussed with him a gamut of issues
related to internal security and disaster management.

Rising Sun Command - The First Responders

Incessant rains at the onset of monsoons saw large part of North Eastern India facing the wrath of floods. The Eastern
Command was at the forefront of rescue operations as the first responders. More than 6000 people have been rescued
from various affected districts of Assam and Tripura. A large number of medical and veterinary camps were established
by the Army to ensure timely medical aid to the affected populace. More than 150 monitoring stations have been put in
place to coordinate the on going rescue operations.

Baatcheet August 2019 11

Communique
ENTITLEMENT SHEET FOR NOK OF BATTLE & PHYSICAL CASUALTIES
NOK OF BATTLE CASUALTIES (FATAL)

Ser Entitled Amount

Entitlements
No Offrs JCOs / OR
1. Ex-Gratia Central Govt ` 25 to 45 lacs ` 25 to 45 lacs
2. AGI Claim ` 75,00,000/- ` 40,00,000/-
3. AGI Maturity As per contribution
4. Liberalized Family Pension* Last Pay Drawn (*Not applicable to All)
5. Death Cum Retirement Gratuity (DCRG) Based on length of service
6. Final Settlement of Account (Incl lve As applicable
encashment & DSOP/AFPP Fund)
7. Ex Gratia (AWWA) ` 15,000/- ` 15,000/-
8. Ex Gratia (ACWF) ` 2,00,000/- ` 2,00,000/-
9. Ex Gratia (J&K) Govt (Only CI/CT incident) ` 5,00,000/- ` 5,00,000/-
10. Ex Gratia (Domicile State Govt) As applicable
11. Death Linked Insurance Scheme (DLIS) - ` 60,000/-
(Excludes monetary allowance and other benefits by State Govt)

NOK OF PHYSICAL CASUALTIES (FATAL)

Ser Entitled Amount
Entitlements
No Offrs JCOs / OR
1. Ex-Gratia Central Govt Nil Nil
2. AGI Claim ` 75,00,000/- ` 40,00,000/-
3. AGI Maturity As per contribution
4. Family Pension ¾¾ Enhanced rate 50 % of Reckonable Emoluments
(RE) for first ten years
¾¾ 30% of RE after ten years
5. Death Cum Retirement Gratuity (DCRG) Based on length of service
6. Final Settlement of Account (Incl lve As applicable
encashment & DSOP/AFPP Fund)
7. Ex Gratia (AWWA) ` 15,000/- ` 15,000/-
8. Ex Gratia (ACWF) ` 2,50,000/- ` 2,50,000/-
9. Ex Gratia (J&K) Govt Nil Nil Nil Nil
10. Ex Gratia (Domicile State Govt) Nil
11. Death Linked Insurance Scheme (DLIS) - ` 60,000/-
(Excludes monetary allowance and other benefits by State Govt)

12 Baatcheet August 2019

welfare and empowerment

Assisted Reproductive Technologies (ART) Centre has been
established at Military Hospital, Jalandhar. The first phase of
the Centre, was made functional in the presence of Lieutenant
General Surinder Singh, General Officer Commanding-in-
Chief, Western Command on 28 June 19.
Mrs Simmi Dutta, Zonal President, Vajra Army Wives
Welfare Association (AWWA) inaugurated a Workshop on
'Inclusive Education Practices in Regular Schools' which was
conducted at Army Public School, Jalandhar from 16 to 20
July 19.

INSPIRING VETERANS
Lalbiakthanga Pachuau– India’s oldest working journalist
Over the past 70 years, Lalbiakthanga Pachuau appears to have lived several lifetimes – from donning the
Olive Green to fighting the Japanese Army in World War II till starting his own newspaper and editing it for
close to half-a-century.
The 90-year-old editor of the Mizo daily, Zoram Tlangau, was declared India’s oldest working journalist
by the Mizoram Journalists Association in 2016.
Born in Siachal, 80 km away from the state capital, Lalbiakthanga
Pachuau studied only till Class III before joining the Assam Regiment
of the British Indian Army in 1945 at 18. He fought for the British Army
in Burma (present Myanmar) against the Japanese. Lalbiakthanga was
awarded several medals for his valour, including the Burma Star, during
his 17-year-long military career. He also participated in the Indo-Pak
war in 1947-48 at Nowshera, Jammu and Kashmir.
After leaving the Army, he started writing for Mizo newspapers and
went on to start Zoram Tlangau, his own newspaper, in 1970, which he
edits till today. He was a key delegate during the peace talks between
New Delhi and the Mizo National Front in 1980s and worked tirelessly
to end the drug and alcohol menace. He co-founded the Association
for voluntary blood donation in Mizoram as its General Secretary. His
contribution in this field has earned him three special awards of State
Blood Transfusion Council. Lalbiakthanga has also held the position
of the President of World War II Veterans Association as well as the
President of the Mizoram Social Defence Union since 1992. He has also
been credited with establishing the first insurance company in Mizoram
and the United Commercial Bank in Mizoram. Lalbiakthanga has
dedicated his life to social service and for the upliftment of the society.
He has lived by the values and virtues of a soldier and continues to
inspire us all.

Baatcheet August 2019 13

TRAINING
Opening Address of Army Scout Masters Competition was
delivered on 26 July 19 at Jaisalmer Military Station. General
Officer Commanding, Battle Axe Division extended warm
welcome to all participants and support staff from friendly
nations. The event is being held from 06-16 August 19.
Western Command Young Officers  Cycling  and Trekking  356 recruits passed out in a spectacular attestation
Expedition under the aegis of HQ  Western Command  was
flagged off at Kafnu (HP) by Commander, Tripeak Brigade.
The expedition team comprising of 20 young officers will
cover a distance of 227 km in the challenging glaciated
terrain of Himachal Pradesh.
The 20th Research Advisory Committee meeting of the High
Altitude Medical Research Centre (HAMRC) was held at
153 General Hospital on 03 July 19. The meeting was chaired
by Lieutenant General Bipin Puri, Director General Armed
Forces Medical Services (DGAFMS).
14
‘TRAIN IN PEACE, SHINE IN WAR’
A nine member Indian Army team left for Belarus to compete
in the Sniper Frontier Competition as part of the International
Army Games scheduled from 03 to 17 August 19. It is a thirteen
day intense sniper competition, encompassing flexibility of
mind, physical fitness along with firing.
parade held at Gaur Drill Square of the  Bihar Regimental
Centre at Danapur Cantonment on 28 July 19.
A glittering valedictory function was organised at Directorate
General Resettlement, Training Centre, Jammu wherein
34 Junior Commissioned Officers and Other Ranks from
the Indian Armed Forces successfully completed their skill
development programme on NIELIT 'O' Level software
course on 26 July 19.
Baatcheet August 2019
Sports & adventure
Greco Roman wrestler from Army Sports Institute, Naib
Subedar Manjeet won Silver Medal at World Ranking Series
tournament in Minsk, Belarus. The Junior Commissioned
Officer is scheduled to participate in World Championships
in Astana, Kazakhstan from 14 -22 September 19.  along the route.
Indian Army  mountaineering expedition to Mt Trishul
(7120M) was flagged-in on 10 July 19 after it returned back
on successful completion of the expedition. The team was
flagged-off from Delhi on 24 May 19.
A joint cycling cum trekking expedition, comprising
participants from the  Indian Army, IMTRAT and Royal
Bhutan Army was flagged-off on 15 July 19 from Haa in
Bhutan. The expedition covered a distance of 161 kilometres
over a span of five days.
Baatcheet August 2019
  "You will never know the depth,
unless you take the leap."
Motorcycle Expedition commemorating 20th anniversary
of Kargil Vijay Diwas was flagged-in at Ahmedabad. The
expedition covered 4000 kms and interacted with school
children, veterans, Veer Naris & Next of Kin of the martyrs
Sports Cadet Achinta Sheuli of Army Sports Institute
participated in the Commonwealth  Weightlifting
Championships at Apia, Samoa in 73 kg weight category
& won Gold Medals in both junior and senior categories,
creating new records.
A unit  under the aegis of  Pine Division,  Vajra Corps,
undertook a Cycling Expedition  from Shimla along Spiti
Valley - Narkanda, Karcham, Pooh, Sumdoh, Kaza, Losar,
Chandra Tal crossing Kunzum pass at a height of 15000 ft
and Rohtang pass towards Manali.
15
Regimental celebrations
INDIAN ARMY SALUTES
BRAVEHEARTS OF KARGIL WAR

KOLKATA

LUCKNOW

PUNE JAIPUR

26th July was observed as 'Kargil Vijay Diwas' to commemorate Indian Army's victory in this epic conflict.
This year, the 20th Anniversary of victory in ‘Operation VIJAY’ was celebrated with the theme ‘Remember,
Rejoice and Renew’ -
'Remembering the Martyrs',
'Rejoice by Celebrating the Victory'
'Renew our Resolve to Safeguard the Honour of the Tricolour'.
Next Edition “OP GIBRALTAR, INDO-PAK 1965”
16 Baatcheet August 2019