The Parachute Regiment is an airborne and special forces regiment of the Indian Army. It was raised in 1945 as part of the British Indian Army but was disbanded after World War II and was re-raised in 1952 as part of the Indian Army. Currently it consists of fifteen Special Forces, two Territorial Army and one Rashtriya Rifles battalions.
Operation Searchlight was a military operation carried out by the Pakistan Army in an effort to curb the Bengali nationalist movement in former East Pakistan in March 1971. Pakistan retrospectively justified the operation on the basis of anti-Bihari violence carried out en masse by the Bengalis earlier that month. Ordered by the central government in West Pakistan, the original plans envisioned taking control of all of East Pakistan's major cities on 26 March, and then eliminating all Bengali opposition, whether political or military, within the following month.
The First and SecondBattles of Hilli were two major battles fought during the Bangladesh Liberation War on 22–24 November and 10–11 December 1971. They are generally regarded as the bloodiest battles of the eastern front of the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971. The first battle saw, according to veterans of the battle, the fiercest fighting of the war, but the second was much tamer.
Tangail is a city of Tangail District in central Bangladesh. A significant city in Bangladesh, Tangail lies on the bank of the Louhajang River, 83 kilometres (52 mi) northwest of Dhaka, the nation's capital. It is the 25th most populous city in Bangladesh.
The Battle of Garibpur was fought between the Indian forces and Pakistani forces for the control of the village of Garibpur, now in Bangladesh. On 20 November 1971, Indian troops of the 14th Battalion of the Punjab Regiment with 14 supporting PT-76 tanks from the 45 Cavalry moved in to capture the areas around Garibpur in Pakistani territory. The battle started by Pakistani troops counterattacking the next day to recapture Garibpur.
Operation Cactus Lilly, better known as The Meghna Heli Bridge or the Crossing of the Meghna, was an air assault operation conducted between 9 and 12 December 1971 during the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971. It was conducted by the Indian Army and Indian Air Force to cross the Meghna River, bypass a Pakistani stronghold at Ashuganj/Bhairab Bazar and reach Dhaka. The operation is generally regarded as the brainchild of Maj. Gen. Sagat Singh. Without it, Indian forces would not have been able to complete the encirclement of Dhaka and it would likely have led to a lengthening of the war.
East Pakistan Air Operations covers the activity of the Pakistan Air Force (PAF) and Pakistan Army Aviation units in former East Pakistan during the Bangladesh Liberation War. The operations involved the interdiction, air defense, ground support, and logistics missions flown by the Bangladesh Air Force, Indian Air Force, and the Indian Navy Aviation wing in support of the Mukti Bahini and later Indian Army in Bengal.
The 11th Indian Infantry Division was an infantry division of the Indian Army during World War II. It formed part of Indian III Corps in the Malaya Command during the Battle of Malaya. The division was re-raised on 1 April 1965 and is presently part of the XII Corps of Southern Command. It is presently responsible for safeguarding the borders with Pakistan along Southern Rajasthan and Gujarat.
The Battle of Sylhet was a major battle fought between the advancing Indian Army and the Pakistani Troops at Sylhet during the Bangladesh Liberation War. The battle took place from 7th December to 15th December and was the Indian Army's first heliborne operation. It was a succession of the Battle of Gazipur in Kulaura.
The Baloch Regiment is an infantry regiment of the Pakistan Army. The modern regiment was formed in May 1956 by the merger of 8th Punjab and Bahawalpur Regiments with the Baluch Regiment. Since then, further raisings have brought the strength of the Regiment to 27 battalions. The Baloch Regiment is descended from the infantry of the old British Indian Army and is named after Balochistan. Before 1991, it was called the Baluch Regiment but the spelling was changed to 'Baloch' to better reflect the correct pronunciation.
Kader Bahini was an independent militia created during the Bangladesh Liberation War of 1971, the other being Mukti Bahini. It was named after its leader, Kader Siddique.
The 8th Punjab Regiment was a regiment of the British Indian Army from 1922 to 1947. It was transferred to Pakistan Army on Partition of India in 1947 and merged with the Baluch Regiment in 1956.
On 25 March 1971, the Pakistani military, supported by paramilitary units, launched the military operation to pacify the insurgent-held areas of East Pakistan, which led to a prolonged conflict with the Bengali Mukti Bahini. Although conventional in nature during March–May 1971, it soon turned into a guerrilla insurgency from June of that year. Indian Army had not directly supported the Bengali resistance but had launched Operation Jackpot to support the insurgency from May 1971.
The Indian Army had no standby force ready in 1971 with the specific task of attacking East Pakistan, one of the many reasons why India did not immediately intervene after Pakistan launched Operation Searchlight in March 1971. Indian Army's Eastern Command was tasked with defending the northern and eastern borders and fighting the insurgencies in Nagaland, Mizoram and Naxalites in West Bengal at that time.
The 50th Parachute Brigade is a brigade-sized formation of the Indian Army. Its main force is formed of battalions of the Parachute Regiment. It consists of 3 Parachute Regiment battalions, supported by units of the Regiment of Artillery, the Corps of Engineers and the Army Medical Corps
The 90th Punjabis were an infantry regiment of the British Indian Army. The regiment was raised in 1799 as a battalion of Madras Native Infantry. It was designated as the 90th Punjabis in 1903 and became 2nd Battalion 8th Punjab Regiment in 1922. In 1947, it was allocated to Pakistan Army, where it continues to exist as 2nd Battalion of The Baloch Regiment.
The 93rd Burma Infantry was an infantry regiment of the British Indian Army. The regiment was raised in 1800 as a battalion of Madras Native Infantry. It was designated as the 93rd Burma Infantry in 1903 and became the 5th (Burma) Battalion 8th Punjab Regiment in 1922. In 1947, it was allocated to the Pakistan Army, where it continues to exist as 5th Battalion of The Baloch Regiment.
The Battle of Kamalpur, launched against the Pakistan Army, is one of the most significant military engagements fought by the Guerrilla armed resistance group, The Mukti Bahini in 1971 during it's war of independence from Pakistan. The Pakistani Army set up a military camp at Kamalpur which was attacked by 1st East Bengal Regiment of Z Force several times. The first attack was made on June 12, and a second attack was made on July 31, 1971, also another attack at 22 October 1971, in total there were 18 battles in Kamalpur, Syed Sadruzzaman Helal led 14 battles against the Pakistani Army which heavily weakened the Pakistani forces present in Kamalpur. India joined the war at Late November, and took their military formations to take Kamalpur, but it was harder for the Indian Army than expected, they made more than 3 unsuccessful attempts to take Kamalpur, the Indian Army's moral was deteriorating, and Casualties were heavily increasing but they knew the Pakistani forces had no artillery, only 2 mortars left, finally, on December 4, the Pakistani Army was overrun and withdrawn and fell back to their headquarters at Jamalpur after an attack by the Bangladeshi Forces and the Indian Army. The Battle of Kamalpur was the deadliest major military engagement in the Bangladeshi War of Liberation, The Mukti Bahini lost 194 soldiers in the battle The Indian Army lost more than 46 soldiers in the battle and a 113 wounded Meanwhile, The Pakistani Army had the most casualties, The Pakistani Army lost 497 soldiers in the battle and around 162 and 220 soldiers captured In the aftermath of the battle, Pakistani troops were defeated and Jamalpur became liberated from Pakistani occupation.
The Eastern Command of the Pakistan Army also known as III Corps was a corps-sized military formation headed by a lieutenant-general, who was designated the Commander 3 Corps. 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.
Prior to Bangladesh Liberation War in 1971, India had no plans for large scale military action in East Pakistan. Since the Sino-Indian War of 1962, the primary objective of the Indian Army Eastern Command was the defence of the Indian northern and eastern borders, defending the "Shiliguri Corridor", and on combating insurgencies raging in Mizoram, Nagaland, Manipur and the Naxalites in West Bengal.
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