Battle of Biar Bet (1965)

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Battle of Biar Bet (1965)
Part of the prelude to the Indo-Pakistani war of 1965
Biarbetcapturedbypakistanmemorial.png
Date24 April – 27 April 1965
Location
Rann of Kutch
Result Pakistani victory
Territorial
changes		 Pakistan gains Biar Bet, Chhad Bet and Sera Bet
Belligerents

Flag of Pakistan.svg Pakistan

Flag of India.svg India

Commanders and leaders
Gen. Musa Khan Hazara
Maj. Gen. Tikka Khan
Brig. Iftikhar Khan Janjua
Brig. Mohammad Azhar
Brig. Sardar Ismail
Brig. S. M. Aslam		 Maj. Gen. P. C Gupta
Gen. J. N. Chaudhuri
Brig. S. S. M. Pahalajani
Lt. Gen. K. Sundarji
Maj. Karnail Singh (POW)
Units involved
6 Brigade
52 Brigade
24 Cavalry
88 Mortar		 3 Para
2 Para
Sardar Post garrison
Biar Bet garrison
Casualties and losses
~150 killed and wounded
3 tanks disabled		 ~120 killed and wounded
2 POW (including Major Karnail Singh)

The Battle of Biar Bet was an engagement between Indian and Pakistani forces in the prelude to the Indo-Pakistani war of 1965, during Pakistan's Rann of Kutch Campaign. During the battle, Pakistan captured the post along with Chhad Bet and held them until the end of the year, until when it was handed back to the Indians while the Pakistanis gained some land.

Contents

Background

Pakistan had started building up its fortifications by the third week of January 1965, due to heightened tensions between the two countries. This build-up was noticed on the 10th of February by Indian patrols, which led to the meeting of Indian and Pakistani border guard leaders to discuss the issues of the Kanjarkot area. [1] The Indians later increased night patrols of the area and in response to this, the Pakistanis set up a standing patrol. [2] This move alarmed the Indians, who began preparations to remove Pakistani troops in the area, [3] this build-up of troops was codenamed "Operation Kabaddi" [1] [2] [4]

In March 1965, the Indian Army prevented the Frontier Corps from carrying out their usual guard duties near Kanjarkot, leading to the beginning of a stand-off between the two opposing side. [5] The Indians subsequently deployed a large amount of troops to the area, leading to the Frontier Corps to call for assistance from thee army command. Maj. Gen. Tikka Khan sent direct orders to Brig. Mohammad Azhar which were as follows

"You will maintain complete control of territory under our de-facto control in area Kanjarkot and not repeat not allow violation of our territory. Avoid provocation but ensure maintenance of status quo" [2]

- Tikka Khan's order to Brig. Azhar

Alongside Azhar there was 6th Brigade under Iftikhar Khan Janjua, 52nd Brigade under Brig. Sardar Ismail and an Artillery Division under S. M. Aslam. Tikka Khan later sent a message to the GHQ in Rawalpindi seeking approval for an attack, but only if a "peaceful solution was not reached".

Prelude

By early April, talks between local commanders had failed, [6] and Pakistan begun to make preparations for an attack at Sardar Post on the night of 8/9th of April. [7] [8] A full night of fighting erupted, with the Pakistan Army's advance compelling the Indians to retreat, while a communications mishap led to the Pakistanis also withdrawing from the area. [2] [1] This led to a stalemate which lasted until late April.

Capture of Sera Bet/Point 84

On 23 April 1965, Brigadier Iftikhar Khan Janjua gave the orders to 6 Punjab to capture Point 84 (aka Sera Bet) on 24 April, mainly due to the aerial reconnaissance support available to support the operation. On 24 April, the area was kept under observation by pilots in an L-19 helicopter and gave information regarding the locations of the enemy. [9] The 3rd Squadron's War Diary records the fact, “The helicopter took part in the attack and capture of Point 84. One Indian English Electric Canberra dived and made a feint attack on our helicopter” [9]

The attack of the 6th Punjab Division was planned as follows:

The shelling of the Point was said to be intense, [1] [2] and after a few hours, an order was given to the Indians to retreat from the area. [10] The Pakistanis assumed control of the Bet at 7:30 AM on the 24th of April 1965. [4] [11]

Battle

On the same day of the capture of Point 84, C-in-C Muhammad Musa approved plans for a Pakistani advance, nicknamed "Operation Arrow Head", with orders for the 6th Brigade under Iftikhar Khan Janjua to move forward and clear Indian positions in and around Sera Bet. [7]

The next day, the 25th of April, Pakistan shifted its focus to the Biar Bet and Chhad Bet posts, which were attacked in the afternoon that day. Low-intensity fighting carried on throughout the day, but due to the sheer size of the Pakistani column, the Indian command in the post considered a victory unlikely. In the night, the Indians were able to bring some reinforcements [1] [4]

The Pakistani infantry in APCs advanced at 7:30 AM on the 26th of April with 13 tanks supporting them, they were faced by a company of 3 Para (India) who were holding the post. The Indians fired upon the advancing Pakistanis, successfully knocking out three M48 Patton tanks. [1] However, the other Pakistani tanks, whose numbers had swelled to about 2 squadrons, continued an advance on the post. Pakistani artillery fire prevented a 2 Para detachment nearby at Arjun Tree [1] from coming to the aid of their comrades. Seeing this, the Indians began to gradually withdraw from Biar Bet. [1] [4] [12]

Pakistani reinforcements began joining up and preparing to join the attack 1-2km away, when the remaining Indians fired all of what they had against their enemy, this did the opposite of what it was intended for [1] and helped the Pakistanis. As Pakistani tanks came closer to the post, the entire Indian force withdrew to avoid being captured or defeated, and the post was surrendered to the Pakistanis by 8:00 AM on April 26th, resulting in Pakistan capturing substantial amounts of ammunition and guns. [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [9] [6] [13] [14] [15]

Aftermath

After the capture of the post, foreign journalists were allowed to visit the area to be shown left over Indian supplies and were later reported to have found American ammunition inside the post, from where the Indian garrison was stationed, causing uproar. [13] [4]

The British Prime Minister, Harold Wilson sent a ceasefire proposal to both countries which was accepted by both Lal Bahadur Shastri and Ayub Khan, due to India being unlikely to win back Sardar Post, Sera Bet and Biar Bet, and Pakistani claims of severe Indian casualties were most likely true, even to the Indian public. [16] Resultantly, Pakistan was awarded 10% of the disputed territory (802 km2) including Chhad Bet and Kanjarkot. [17] [18] [2]

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References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 "The 1965 War, Bharat Rakshak, Official Archives, 1965 Chapter 2, p. 5" (PDF).
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Shuja Nawaz (2008). Crossed Swords Shuja Nawaz. p. 204.
  3. 1 2 Bhargava, G. S. After Nehru - India's New Image. p. 265.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Farooq Bajwa (2016-01-01). from kutch to tashkent: the indo-pakistan war of 1965. Internet Archive. Pentagon Press. p. 78. ISBN   978-969-640-004-2.
  5. 1 2 "The 1965 War, Battle of the Rann of Kutch".
  6. 1 2 The Kutch-Sind border question : a collection of documents with comments. Internet Archive. New Delhi : Indian Society of International Law. 1965. p. 168.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: others (link)
  7. 1 2 Farooq Bajwa (2016-01-01). from kutch to tashkent: the indo-pakistan war of 1965. Internet Archive. Pentagon Press. p. 79. ISBN   978-969-640-004-2.
  8. ↑ The Kutch-Sind border question : a collection of documents with comments. Internet Archive. New Delhi : Indian Society of International Law. 1965. p. 160.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: others (link)
  9. 1 2 3 Aamir Cheema. Aryan Wars. p. 125.
  10. ↑ Farooq Bajwa (2016-01-01). from kutch to tashkent: the indo-pakistan war of 1965. Internet Archive. Pentagon Press. ISBN   978-969-640-004-2.
  11. ↑ M. Ahmed, 7
  12. ↑ The Political Triangle, K. Raman Pillai, p. 89
  13. 1 2 Harold Weisberg. AESOP 12-62 To 06-65. Michael Best. The Weisberg Archive, Beneficial-Hodson Library, Hood College.
  14. ↑ "PAKISTANIS HOLD POST OF BIAR BET; Assert Indians Fled 'Island' in Rann of Cutch Wastes". New York Times . 29 April 1965. Retrieved 4 November 2024.
  15. ↑ "Indian Gallantry Awards, p. 3" (PDF).
  16. ↑ Gulzar Ahmed, Pakistan Meets Indian Challenge, Al-Mukhtar Publishers, 1967, p. 70
  17. ↑ Mahmood, Safdar (1968). Pakistan Affairs. Internet Archive. Lahore, Publishers United. p. 93.
  18. ↑ CIA Reading Room (1965-04-30). CIA Reading Room cia-rdp79t00975a008200530001-2: CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE BULLETIN.
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