NEW DELHI: The Indian Armed Forces lost 127 of their men in the counterinsurgency operations in Jammu and Kashmir over the last six months, while 320 personnel were wounded from April 1 to September 30 last. As many as 87% of the casualties came from the infantry.
A total of 112 personnel were decorated with gallantry awards of these, 83% were won by the infantry soldier according to Director General of Infantry Lt Gen C.K. Kapoor, who announced the figures to highlight the crucial role the infantry continues to play in combating insurgency.
During the same period, the armed forces killed over 800 militants and seized over 2,000 weapons, most of them of foreign origin, having been smuggled from across the Line of Actual Control (LAC),Lt Gen Kapoor said.
“Infantry has relevance for the future,” he said, elaborating that the possibility of a high-tech war like the Gulf War was remote in the subcontinent. While a conventional war ‘was too costly, it was likely that hostile neighbors would sustain a low intensity war.
Another area where the infantry would play a crucial role in the future is the United Nations peacekeeping ‘operations, he said, The Indian troops succeeded in their mission in Somalia satisfactorily, while the US troops there had faced sharp criticism. Even the UN Secretary General had praised the Indian soldiers’ contribution to peacekeeping in Somalia, Lt Gen Kapoor pointed out.
The infantry had initiated the first military operation in Srinagar to save the airfield and town on October 27, 1947 which has since then been commemorated as “Infantry Day.”
Later, many changes also crept in the ‘Infantry tradition’ in tune with the changing times. The most important change sought to be instilled in the soldiers’ ethos is concern for human rights, The Army Headquarters have set up a Human Rights Cell which interacts with the National Human Rights Commission and ensures that human rights policy percolates down to the grassroots “Lot of emphasis is being laid on the training of troops on the issue of human rights,” Lt Gen Kapoor said, adding that it was due to this that their task had become more difficult while guarding the LAC. When a soldier has to identify a friend or a foe, he is, in fact, fighting with a hand tied behind his back, he said.
In tune with the psychological warfare being waged, the soldiers are taught to avoid cracking down on families sheltering militants since the latter draw cooperation from the people mostly under duress and at gunpoint. This was unheard of in North East and Punjab during the counterinsurgency operation there.
When it comes to dealing with what the Army calls, the “misguided youth,” the application of force has to be tailored accordingly, A considerable lime is being spent in winning over people’s sympathy, which is a complicated process.
Article extracted from this publication >> November 24, 1995
