11th Infantry Division | |
---|---|
Active | July 1965 - Present |
Country | Pakistan |
Allegiance | PAK |
Branch | Pakistan Army |
Type | Infantry |
Role | Division |
Size | 20,000 men (though this may vary as units are rotated) |
Part of | IV Corps |
Division Headquarters | Lahore, Punjab province |
Colours | Red over Black |
Anniversaries | Defence Day |
Engagements | Indo-Pakistani War of 1965 Battle of Lahore, Battle of Khem Karan, Battle of Husseinwala |
Decorations | Awards and decorations of the Pakistan military |
Commanders | |
General Officer Commanding | Major General Malik Amir Muhammad Khan |
Colonel Staff | Colonel Babar |
Notable commanders | General Raheel Sharif General Abdul Hamid Khan LTG Nadeem Taj Major General Bilal Omer Khan Major General Raza Muhammad Major General Azeem Asif LTG Shafaat Ullah Shah Major General Muhammad Ali Khan |
The 11th Infantry Division is an active formation of the Pakistan Army. It is currently deployed in Lahore as part of IV Corps, and is responsible for the defence of that city and the surrounding areas.
The division was formed just before the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965. Prior to this, the army chief at the time, General Muhammad Musa, had been calling for raising two new divisions; [1] this was denied by the government citing a benign security environment, the lack of funds and the general reluctance of the US to fund new risings under the foreign military assistance scheme. [2]
After the 1962 Sino-Indian War, the Indian army underwent a substantial increase in numbers and capability and, therefore, the Pakistani government reversed its position and the division was raised by utilising reserve GOC, Major General Abdul Hamid Khan. [3] The Division was then assigned to the defence of Lahore.
The Division as a whole first went into action at the Battle of Lahore, though individual units had seen action already in the Rann of Kutch and in Operation Grand Slam. It, along with the 10th Division, successfully withstood the Indian assault towards Lahore, with the 11th fighting in the Kasur region. After this battle, the division was committed to the Khem Karan offensive, for which the Divisional HQ was given command of the 1st Armoured Division. The two formations successfully managed to capture Khem Karan, though further attacks by the 1st Armoured were checked by the Indians. At the same time as the fighting in Khem Karan, the Indian offensive towards Sialkot was making progress at the Battle of Chawinda and the 1st Armoured was withdrawn to reinforce the Pakistani forces in that sector. The 11th was forced to fall back to Khem Karan, where it withstood multiple attempts by the Indians to retake the town, however the ceasefire found the division in command of the town and several hundred square kilometres of Indian territory. [4]
Six years later, the division once again went into action in the 1971 war, and in a repeat of the experience in 1965, the Division crossed the Radcliffe Line, the international border, once more. 106 Brigade succeeded in overwhelming the resistance of the Indian 15th Battalion, Punjab Regiment (35 Infantry Brigade, 14th Infantry Division of India) to take significant ground near Hussainiwala, thereby controlling a key dam and threatening the border town of Ferozepur. [5] One of the famous features that the formation captured was the Qaisar-e-Hind Fort.
The division is at present deployed around Lahore and has the following composition: [6]
The 1st Armoured Division is an armoured division of the Indian Army, headquartered at Patiala, Punjab. It is part of II Corps of the Indian Army's Western Command.
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The Battle of Asal Uttar was one of the largest tank battles fought during the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965. It was fought from 8 to 10 September 1965, when the Pakistan Army thrust its tanks and infantry into Indian territory, capturing the Indian town of Khemkaran 5 km from the International Border. The Indian troops retaliated, and after three days of bitter fighting, the battle ended with the Pakistani forces being repulsed near Asal Uttar. Factors that contributed to this were the fierce fight put up by the Indian Army, conditions of the plains, better Indian tactics, and a successful Indian strategy.
Khem Karan is a town and a nagar panchayat in Tarn Taran district of Patti tehsil of the Majha region of the Indian state of Punjab.
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The 6th Armoured Division is a Pakistan Army armoured division currently based in Gujranwala, in Punjab Province.
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The 16th Light Cavalry is a regiment of the Armoured Corps, a primary combat arm of the Indian Army. Prior to India gaining independence from the British in 1947, it was a regular cavalry regiment of the British Indian Army. It was formed in 1776 and is the oldest armoured regiment raised in India. The 16th Light Cavalry saw service in a number of conflicts ranging from the Second Anglo-Mysore War in 1781 to World War II. It has a number of battle honours including "Punjab 1965" earned during the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965.
The Battle of Chumb was a major battle between the forces of Pakistan and India during the 1971 Indo-Pakistani war. It was one of the first major engagements in the western front of the war in which the Pakistani 23rd Division captured the strategically important city of chumb from the Indian 10th Infantry Division.
The Battle of Phillora was a large tank battle fought during the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965. It commenced on 10 September when the Indian 1st Armoured Division, with four armoured regiments and supporting forces under command, attacked positions in the Sialkot sector held by Pakistani 6th Armoured Division. After three days the Pakistanis withdrew with the loss of 66 tanks. The Indians admitted to the loss of 6 Centurions.
The Eastern Command of the Pakistan Army was a corps-sized military formation headed by a lieutenant-general, who was designated the Commander Eastern Command. After the partition of India by United Kingdom, the Islamic Republic of Pakistan was divided into two territories separated by 1,000 miles (1,600 km). Most of the assets of the Pakistan armed forces were stationed in West Pakistan; the role of the Pakistan armed forces in East Pakistan was to hold that part of the country until the Pakistani forces defeated India in the west. The Pakistan Army created the Eastern Command, with one commander in the rank of Lieutenant General responsible for the command. The armed forces, had drawn up a plan to defend Dhaka by concentrating all their forces along the Dhaka Bowl.
The Guides Infantry, or 2nd Battalion (Guides) The Frontier Force Regiment, is an infantry battalion of the Pakistan Army. It was raised in 1846 as part of the famous Corps of Guides, a highly mobile force to act as guides to troops in the field and gather intelligence beyond the borders of British India. The corps recruited men from various backgrounds, with Pathans, Punjabi Muslims, Sikhs, and Dogras forming the majority of their manpower. Under the leadership of Lieutenant Harry Burnett Lumsden, the Guides gained a formidable reputation and introduced the dust-colored "khaki" uniforms, later adopted by the British Army in India. The corps became part of the Punjab Frontier Force, known as Piffers, which maintained order on the Punjab Frontier for fifty years.
The Battle of Burki was a battle during the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965 between Indian infantry and Pakistani armour units. Burki is a village, that lies south-east of Lahore near the border with Punjab. For reference, that is just 11 km from the Allama Iqbal International Airport in Lahore, and is connected to Lahore by the a bridge over the Bambawali-Ravi-Bedian (BRB) Canal. During the battle, the strength of the two sides were relatively even. Indian infantry clashed with Pakistani forces that were entrenched in pillboxes, dug-outs and slit trenches that had been carved into the canal banks. The Pakistanis were supported by a large number of tanks, as well as fighter jets. The battle resulted in an Indian victory.
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