In June 1986, during an annual patrol along the Sumdorong Chu river in Arunachal Pradesh’s Tawang district, Indian troops were shocked to see Chinese structures, including a helipad, in Indian territory. The location was close to where the first clashes of the 1962 war took place. India lodged an official protest over four months, but to no avail. That is when Army chief General Krishnaswamy Sundarji launched Operation Falcon, airlifting an infantry brigade (nearly 5,000 men) to Zemithang, close to Sumdorong Chu. With the Army upping the ante, the People’s Liberation Army of China had to come to the negotiating table.
That incident revealed India’s need for a dedicated mountain strike force to keep China in check. The government, however, warmed up to the idea only after the April 2013 standoff between Indian and Chinese troops in eastern Ladakh’s Depsang Valley. An internal report by the Indo-Tibetan Border Police, too, said that 640sqkm in Raki Nala in northeast Ladakh had been inaccessible to troops because of a large PLA incursion.
Finally, on January 1, 2014, Major General Raymond Joseph Noronha hoisted the flag of the newly-sanctioned XVII Corps in Ranchi. The XVII Corps was raised on the principle that ‘the best defence is in offense’. Military planners expected a corps of 90,000 men for the Himalayan frontiers, with two divisions armed with integral air assets like attack and transport helicopters and drones. But, the XVII Corps, also known as Brahmastra Corps, has only one infantry division with 16,000 men in Panagarh, West Bengal. The proposed second division in Pathankot has been shelved.
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Denne historien er fra July 04, 2021-utgaven av THE WEEK.
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William Dalrymple goes further back
Indian readers have long known William Dalrymple as the chronicler nonpareil of India in the early years of the British raj. His latest book, The Golden Road, is a striking departure, since it takes him to a period from about the third century BC to the 12th-13th centuries CE.
The bleat from the street
What with all the apps delivering straight to one’s doorstep, the supermarkets, the food halls and even the occasional (super-expensive) pop-up thela (cart) offering the woke from field-to-fork option, the good old veggie-market/mandi has fallen off my regular beat.
Courage and conviction
Justice A.M. Ahmadi's biography by his granddaughter brings out behind-the-scenes tension in the Supreme Court as it dealt with the Babri Masjid demolition case
EPIC ENTERPRISE
Gowri Ramnarayan's translation of Ponniyin Selvan brings a fresh perspective to her grandfather's magnum opus
Upgrade your jeans
If you don’t live in the top four-five northern states of India, winter means little else than a pair of jeans. I live in Mumbai, where only mad people wear jeans throughout the year. High temperatures and extreme levels of humidity ensure we go to work in mulmul salwars, cotton pants, or, if you are lucky like me, wear shorts every day.
Garden by the sea
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RECRUITERS SPEAK
Industry requirements and selection criteria of management graduates
MORAL COMPASS
The need to infuse ethics into India's MBA landscape
B-SCHOOLS SHOULD UNDERSTAND THAT INDIAN ECONOMY IS GOING TO WITNESS A TREMENDOUS GROWTH
INTERVIEW - Prof DEBASHIS CHATTERJEE, director, Indian Institute of Management, Kozhikode
COURSE CORRECTION
India's best b-schools are navigating tumultuous times. Hurdles include lower salaries offered to their graduates and students misusing AI
