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Hoon Talk
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How the Siachen war was ill-conceived and ill-planned |
ITBP personnel training for high altitude combat
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Extracts from Lt. Gen. P.N. Hoon’s
Memoirs Unmasking Secrets of Turbulence
(Published in 2000)
I took over as corps commander of 15 Corps on 3 August 1983. In September-October I briefed Prime Minister Indira Gandhi about the strategic importance of Siachen and about Pakistan’s designs to capture Kardung La, (sic) the highest motorable road in the world, and thus dominate Leh by bringing artillery, rockets etc, into the Nubra Valley — capture Leh and then link up with the Chinese at Aksai Chin.
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The preparation for Operation Meghdoot started long before the operation was actually launched. In November-December 1983, I went on a shopping mission to Europe. The shopping did not include arms, but skis, tents, boots and other equipment for soldiers to survive in high altitude. The operation was finally launched on 13 April 1984. It was still winter in Siachen. The plan was a vertical envelopment by surprise during winter, when the passes were closed and this is what happened. By 18 April, we had secured control over Siachen, including Indira Col…
As commander of the operation, I wish to state that the operation was launched after a careful logistics planning. The initial plan of putting 20 to 30 men over Sia La, Bilafond La and Gyong La was only an interim action. This was to be followed by the raising of a brigade (three battalions with 1,200 troops each) trained in ‘white shod operations’ ie, who would be ski-trained and hence would operate throughout the year. The brigade was raised when I was the corps commander of 15 corps. This was to be further made into a division (three brigades or nine battalions) and then within one or two years it was to be organised into a STRIKE FORCE CORPS FOR WHITE SHOD OPERATIONS (author’s emphasis). This was never carried out.
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