For the Nation, today, 16th
Dec marks the 41st anniversary of its
victory over Pakistan resulting the liberation of East Pakistan now called
Bangladesh. Commemorating the
victory, Vijay Diwas is being celebrated
in many parts of the country. Forty one years
ago, on this day in 1971, the Indian
Army won war against Pakistan and a liberated Bangladesh emerged. On this day in 1971, the Pakistani Army
surrendered to the Indo-Bangladeshi High Command in Dhaka, ending the 9
month-long Bangladesh Liberation War and
1971 Bangladeshatrocities. General AAK Niazi, the Commanding officer of the
Pakistani Armed Forces located inEast Pakistan, surrendered his forces to Lt.
Gen. Jagjit Singh Aurora, the Allied forces commander.
This is not to be confused with “Kargil Vijay Diwas”
named after the success of Operation Vijay – which on - 26th of July 1999,
India successfully took command of the high outposts which had been lost to
Pakistani intruders. The Kargil war was fought for more than 60 days, ended on
26th of July.
Today, i.e., 16th
December, India pays tribute to its
martyred soldiers who died in 1971 war.
There are reports of celebrations of the 'Vijay Diwas' at Shivaji Park,
Mumbai. Defence Minister AK Antony paid homage to the brave soldiers at Amar
Jawan Jyoti at India Gate. The chiefs of the defence forces in India, Indian
Navy Chief, Admiral D.K Joshi, Army Chief General Bikram Singh and Air Chief
Marshal, N.A.K Browne, also paid their homage to the martyred soldiers. At
Shivaji Park, around 1500 military personnel from across the states are
scheduled to gather to mark this victory day in a three-day programme.
Reports state that the Army through 'Know Your Army Mela' would also
try to reach out to people and would show its military might. Military bands will be displayed at Gateway of
India, Chowpatty and at Radium Mall. Problems of ex-servicemen's residing in
Mumbai and nearby areas will also be addressed in the Mela. Youth will also be
told about the benefits of joining the Army.
There are reports of
celebrations at Agartala also. A wreath
laying ceremony was organised at the War Memorial in Lichu Bangan, and in the
capital city Agartala. Tripura Governor D.Y. Patil and the state's Science and
Technology Minister Joygobinda Debroy laid the wreaths in memory of the slain
soldiers. According to historian and writer Bikach Chowdhury, Tripura had six
to seven camps in four sectors from where the 'muktijoddhas' (freedom fighters)
fought the Pakistani forces in the nine-month-long war in 1971 that led to the
creation of Bangladesh, which was earlier East Pakistan. "Over 1,600,000
Bangladeshis - a number larger than the state's then total population of
1,500,000 - had taken shelter in Tripura alone," he said.
During the Bangladesh
Liberation War, 10 million men, women and children from then East Pakistan took
shelter in the Indian states of West Bengal, Tripura, Assam and Meghalaya.
The Liberation War, as it
is called in Bangladesh, later turned into a full-scale India-Pakistan war,
leading to surrenders of thousands of Pakistani soldiers in December 1971. India
was the first country to recognise Bangladesh.
The Bangladesh Liberation
War was an armed conflict over a duration of about 9 months, putting Bangladesh
erstwhile East Pakistan and India against the State of Pakistan. The war
started on 26 March 1971 between the State of Pakistan and East Pakistan, India
intervened on 3 December 1971. Armed conflict ended on 16 December 1971 and
resulted in the secession of East Pakistan, which became the independent nation
of Bangladesh. The war broke out when
army units directed by the State of Pakistan (then controlled by West Pakistan)
launched a military operation called Operation Searchlight in East Pakistan
against Bengali civilians. On 16 December 1971, the allied forces of the Indian
army and the Mukti Bahini defeated the West Pakistani forces deployed in the
East.
With regards – S.
Sampathkumar.
