20 th OCTOBER is nearing

[bls31]

story No 107 from my book 'SMILES TEARS AND HEARTBREAKS.
bls31

THE TRAP IS BAITED




I



T WAS THE PROVERBIAL ‘LULL BEFORE THE STORM’ that day of September the 8th, a Saturday, a weekend, the legacy left by the British. In bracing cold Tawang at 10000 feet plus was basking in bright sunshine. A clear day with the greens of the meadows, the deep blues of the sky, the silver of the river Tawang Chu flowing deep in the valley, the browns and reds of houses of the Tawang village, the majesty of the Tawang Monastery visible not far away was over powering.

It was not too cold, not too hot but just pleasant. Tawang that day was a tourist’s delight. However, there were no tourists to Tawang those days, except the occasional VIP brass, those who choppered to stay for lunch, give sermons, and talk in platitudes and fly back again to civilisation in plains of Tezpur, Lucknow or Delhi.

In any case it was too quiet and peaceful to resemble a noisy and bustling tourists resort with the Brigade HQ equally quiet. There was no officer present in the HQ except Lt Sharma, the Brigade Ordnance Officer, the duty-officer of the day; all others had gone off to attend a Bara Khana in one of the battalions.

It was my practice to go for an evening walk in the afternoon. I was reluctant to go out on this day as there was no one in the Brigade HQ. However, Lt Sharma insisted even though he was the duty officer. We had been lulled to the extent that even the duty officer was willing to leave his post with firm faith that nothing could happen, especially in our Brigade Sector. We left via the Signal Centre as was my practice. It was all quiet there, nothing on the air or line: some how too peaceful for my liking.

We may have been away at the most for an hour. However, as we approached the HQ, I could feel a tension in the air resulting in quickening of our pace. The scene had completely changed. It was getting dark and gloomy and there was unease in the atmosphere. Some thing was wrong, very wrong.

Wondering as to what had happened to bring about the sudden and drastic change, both of us gingerly trooped in to the Brigade Major Kharbanda ‘s room, apprehensive and expecting a rocket for our absence from the HQ, where in every one seemed to have gathered. No one took notice of our entry.

It transpired that ‘Bingo’ the Assam Rifles post had been surrounded by more than 600 Chinese earlier in the day.


Kharbanda a bit worse for wear, thanks to some extra beer, incoherent with his eyes- bleary, red and watering but a soldier to core - he was all decked up in full battle gear with his large-pack ready for move, as we could see was, and all set to relieve the post single-handed. All of us were more worried about him, desperately trying to hold him back, than the Chinese or Bingo.

The scene would have definitely appeared a bit comical to an outsider, ideal for a sequence in the war movies being produced in Bombay.

Suddenly Hindi Chini ‘bhai bhai’ became Hindi Chini ‘bye bye’

Kharbanda’s small room, the telephone ringing continuously with incoming and out going calls to Tezpur where all of us of the Brigade HQ had gathered resembled an ad hoc Operational Room. With so many of us crowding around the air had become charged with combined energy of diverse emotions: excitement, apprehension, uncertainty and even fear of the unknown, all adding to the whole in various proportions depending on the attitude of the particular individual.

With the BM being out of action, Major Pereira the DQ, the only possible link with the Commander at Tezpur and possibly me the Signals officer had a role to play, others apart from the mess staff providing unending supply of mugs of coffee and tea were just hanging around, trying to look involved and useful not unlike friends and relations holding vigil outside the Operating Theatre with some near and dear one on the surgeon’s table inside.

Willy-nilly the Brigade HQ swung into action Maj Pereira took charge of the situation. Commander was located in the guest room of the Mahar Regiment at the Tezpur airfield next door to the air field from where his IAC plane was to take off early next morning carrying him thousands of miles away to Meerut in North India. The plane did takeoff the next morning. However, his seat was empty. He took another seat but in a helicopter back to Tawang.

And soon with a knee-jerk reaction, the Brigade tasked and well entrenched for the protection of Tawang was ordered to exit and move to relieve the post and drive the Chinese out of the Indian Territory.

The cleverly baited Trap, laid on 8th of September, was, to be sprung shut, with frightening consequences, on the 20th of October.

108 THE TRAP IS SPRUNG
Headquarter Seven Brigade Valley of River Namkachu
20 October 1962

[bls31]

STORY NO 108 bls31


THE TRAP IS SPRUNG

Headquarter Seven Brigade Valley of River Namkachu
20 October 1962




I




T WAS 5 O' CLOCK IN THE MORNING; the mountains and the valley were all asleep. The gurgling small waterfall, opposite the HQ, was quietly adding its music to the prevailing tranquil environment, It was quiet in the Brigade HQ at Rongla, 10500 feet above sea level, in the narrow valley of river Namkachu lying sandwiched between the Thagla feature, infested by the Chinese and Tsangdhar occupied by own troops.

I was sleeping in my one-man arctic-tent, fully clothed, as was my practice. Suddenly a mortar bomb landed in the HQ with a big bang, rudely awakening the sleeping valley and shattering the prevailing fragile pace, the make believe war over and so were the pious hopes of all and sundry, all the way, right up to Delhi. The Chinese meant business. It took me a few moments to locate my snow-boots and put them on and get going

My first and immediate reaction was to get the Brigade Command Radio Net switched on. On checking the lines to the battalions were found to be out. The Chinese had done the trick and cut the lines just before commencing the shelling.

It was amazing to see the raw signalmen, some of who had joined the section only a few days back straight from the training centre, on job without fear or tension visible on their faces. Maybe it was the team spirit; perhaps it was confidence in their superiors or sheer ignorance of the danger being faced. No one left the radio sets or the Signal Centre even though mortar bombs were exploding over the Brigade HQ fairly rapidly.

2 Rajput who had faced the brunt of the initial Chinese attack came on air for about 15 minutes to inform that they were under attack; soon there was this ominous silence. What had transpired, as we learnt later, was that the battalion’s Signal bunker was demolished by enemy fire, killing all including the operators of my section manning the link from brigade to battalion.

We had also got through to 1/9 GR and Divisional Tactical HQ immediately. As mentioned the Chinese had cut the telephone lines from Brigade HQ to the battalions. However, the portion of the lines from Div TAC HQ passing through 9 Punjab and 4 Grenadiers was still intact; both had tapped this line, clandestinely to eavesdrop on the conversations between Division and Brigade. This act, though unauthorised, kept us informed as to what was happening in their locality through Headquarter.

Lt Col Tewari, my commanding officer, on a short visit, who had spent the night with the Gurkhas had by now come to the Signals bunker and was on the set, with me sitting on the control at Brigade HQ. 1/9 GR remained on the air till about 8 O’ Clock and then went off.

According to Col Tewari, who was taken prisoner by the Chinese, on his return, the Chinese converging on to the bunker and firing had hit both the operators; one of the operators was riddled by bullets and must have died immediately the other was also hit though partially protected by the radio set.

First time in action for me it was all so unreal - like a bad dream which would hopefully go away. To the Commander and his experienced staff it was real.

I can still recall Brig Dalvi’s ashen face, seeing his command disintegrating right in front of eyes, his helplessness to do any thing, his frustration on what had been happening since 8th September the date when the Chinese had confronted our forward post Dhola. It makes me sad even now as I can only now understand as to what must have been going on through his mind at that time and his impotence to influence the events.

Casualties had by now started to trickle to Brigade HQ. The first officer to land in Brigade HQ was Lt. Ravi Eipe of 2 Rajput, who staggered with a few of his Jawans, worse for wear and rather incoherent, but made the gravity of the situation more obvious to the Commander and all of us. Next to fetch up was Major Pawar of 1/9 GR Company Commander of the forward company on the left of the Brigade HQ. He walked in a dazed condition with his revolver pointing straight ahead and informed the Commander that the Chinese were just 200 yards away and following.

The Brigade having lost both command and control could do little to influence the battle. We could only cluster together and look around and up, the question of bed tea and breakfast never arose that day and for the next few days to follow.

With the deteriorating tactical situation we were told to organise our-selves in 10 minutes flat and get out, the next destination being the earlier location of Tsangdhar to where Brigadier Dalvi having taken permission from the GOC planned to withdraw and hoped to re-establish his command: at least two of our battalions 9 Punjab and 4 Grenadiers still appeared to be intact.

In the short time available we started getting organised at a fast pace for the move. I asked Manikam to arrange for some sugar and tea leaves for the move to Tsangdhar, but according to him all the stock had already finished by the previous evening, so much for Administration in War. There were no porters and the equipment had been distributed on various personnel of the section to carry on non existing tracks.

With this limited equipment and the approximately 40 Signals personnel with me at this time I hoped to provide hard scale communications to the Brigade HQ at Tsangdhar.

For the first time I was going to have excess of manpower than required. Hard scale as a slogan coined by Gen Kaul had by now become famous.

My last look at the till now Brigade HQ location that we were abandoning was that of a solitary goat tied to a tree scared to death and bleating loudly due to the deafening sounds of the ongoing bombardment. It had travelled all the way from Gauhati by air, parachuted at Tsangdhar, brought down to Rongla possibly on some one’s shoulders as meat on hoof for the troops. The poor goat was now being left behind by us to welcome the Chinese.
I do not recall my feelings at that time or what was going through my mind. It is a total blank. A thought did pass through my mind at that time, It may sound funny or improbable to some but it is factual otherwise I would not have remembered it even after so long. With mortar bombs falling all around, a couple of casualties already in the Headquarter location with the prevailing confusion and chaos and the attacking Chinese possibly very near with death or worse a serious injury happening any time being very much on cards, I did think of approaching God. Though God fearing, I did not pray, nor do I now: immediately after the first a second thought came fleeting in, about the book of records up there of my deeds and miss-deeds, if any was being maintained, a prayer at that time would be the only entry and may be considered as a selfish action by an opportunist; an adverse entry on my report card. I quickly discarded the idea; in any case there was no time even for a silent prayer.

Possibly my unsaid prayer did some how reach God otherwise I would have still remained ‘Missing in Action’ as I was soon to be declared by AG’s Branch at Army HQ.