The battle of Longewala was a prime engagement between India
and Pakistan during the 1971 war. The battle fought in Thar Desert of
Rajasthan proved decisive in establishing that Indian military was
mightier with superior tactical moves than their Pakistani counterparts.
The Pakistani side suffered a humiliating defeat and a major blow to
their overall battle strategy.
Since that day, Battle of Longewala has
been epitomized and immortalized through documentaries, movies and
serials depicting the valor of Indian soldiers fighting against all
odds.
Poster of Border movie which was based on Battle of Longewala
But, has anybody questioned the battle
moves of Pakistani Army? Isn’t it difficult to contemplate that a
battalion of 120 soldiers defeated an army (of Approx. 2000 soldiers)
having 2 infantry brigades and 2 armored brigades? Well, we are not
trying to question or undermine the bravery of our soldiers who despite
having the option to retreat, decided to stick and hold their positions.
But, we certainly want to dig deeper into the tactical blunders made by
Pakistan.
The plan was to launch a quick offensive
and capture enemy territories which could be used as bargaining chip
for areas of East Pakistan (now Bangladesh). Pakistan’s generals knew
that they wouldn’t be able to continue the battle for long due to
international pressure. Hence, they hatched a plan to invade Longewala,
Ramgarh and Jaisalmer till morning. This motive forced them to launch an
offensive during night.
The outpost at Longewala was originally a
BSF post having a strong defensive position. The post was located on a
height from the ground level which gave Indian forces a clear vision of
the ground beneath and hence a definite advantage over their enemy. The
high sand dunes surrounding the post made it intractable for armored
vehicles.
Border movie scene depicting post height in background
3) Poor intelligence
Capturing Longewala post was of
paramount importance to Pakistan’s army as it allowed control over vast
tracts of land. But, the intelligence agencies in Pakistan couldn’t
report that the BSF post was now being held by a company of Punjab
regiment with artillery support from 168 and 170 field regiment (Veer
Rajput).
Who would have thought that a company of soldiers would stall the dreams of a nation to have a battle win against India?
4) Unaware of the ground surface
The biggest blunder was the unawareness
regarding the terrain. As the military onslaught was scheduled in night,
an engineer reconnaissance should have preceded the brigade to make
their advance rapid. The desert inhibited the movement of the tanks
which delayed the attack.
Multi-pronged attack is more effective
than a separate ground or air attack. But, Pakistani army couldn’t get
the much needed air support to ward off the Indian Air Force which
proved fatal for their armored tank regiment. In all, 36 T-59 tanks were
destroyed or captured making it one of the largest tank casualties for a
side in a single war since World War II.
The Pakistani commanders made some hasty
decisions during the course of the battle which instead of helping them
aided their enemies. On discovering barbed wires near the Indian
outpost they quickly concluded it to be a minefield and halted their
advance. After 2 hours of battle, they realized the trap that there was
no minefield.
The fuel containers on Pakistani tanks
were targeted by Indian military. These containers exploded to provide
ample light for Indians to target Pakistani brigade soldiers and at the
same time produced enough smoke and foggy view for soldiers on the
ground.
While Indian company commander Major
Kuldip Singh Chandpuri was awarded with second highest gallantry award,
The Mahavir Chakra. The Pakistani commander General Mustafa was
recommended to be tried for negligence during war.
Editor
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