The strategically necessary ‘Fingers’, the spurs positioned on the northern financial institution of Pangong Tso in Ladakh, have been talked about lots. However few know concerning the battle of Sirjap, positioned north of the gorgeous lake.
It was the 12 months 1962. Within the month of June, orders got here to determine a submit on the north financial institution of Pangong Tso. With the intention to clearly reveal India’s presence, Brigade Commander Brigadier Rawind Singh Grewal, MC, selected that this submit could be at Sirjap. To cross the lake, the Brigadier managed to get a couple of storm boats.
How The Sirjap Publish Was Established
The duty of creating the submit was given to Main PP Singh, the commander of the 1/8 Gorkha Rifles’ Delta Firm. On June 12, Singh together with Captain P.L. Kher boarded set off to determine a section-sized submit at Sirjap. However it would not be lengthy earlier than the enemy surrounded it. When the message for assist got here, Main DS Rawat and Quartermaster Captain Issac David Joseph left by boat with a couple of others to strengthen Sirjap in case there was an assault. Then, on July 21, Captain Ved Parkash Bhasin would set up a second submit there, Sirjap-II. These two collectively made up the Sirjap advanced. Simply on the other financial institution, there was the Yula advanced, manned by one other firm of 1/8 Gorkha Rifles.
Indian troops at Sirjap
In August, Main Dhan Singh Thapa was despatched to Sirjap as commander of the Delta Firm. All this time, the Chinese language had been strengthening their posts and exerting psychological stress on Indian troops by means of propaganda messages. What made issues more difficult was that the Sirjap advanced, maintained by assault boats, had no land connection to the Chushul Garrison. The Chinese language, in distinction, had been well-prepared, and so they had been closing in. With direct street linkages to the place with Khurnak Fort, it was a lot simpler for them to move reinforcements, provides, and heavy weaponry. Indian forces, in distinction, had solely private weapons and LMGs, with the lake serving as the one provide line.
The Battle of Sirjap
The Indo-China struggle began on October 20, and by the subsequent morning, the Indian Military place at Sirjap-I had come beneath assault from Chinese language artillery and mortars. The Gorkha troops at Sirjap-I had already been severely injured within the onslaught. At this level, the Chinese language started to progressively method the Indian stronghold, and Main Thapa’s remoted firm was assaulted closely by the PLA forces. The Chinese language quickly got here up with mild tanks, towards which Indian troops had no weapons. Even so, Main Thapa’s Gorkha males managed to answer three enemy assaults.
Sadly, Thapa’s firm suffered tremendously. When the Gorkhas’ ammunition ran out, they took on the enemy with their ‘khukri’, yelling ‘Jai Maa Kali Aayo Gorkhali‘. Simply seven of Thapa’s 28 troops survived on the finish of that battle. Sirjap-I fell to the enemy in the end, and after overpowering the Indian forces, the Chinese language captured Main Thapa as a prisoner of struggle. After heavy combating, the Chinese language additionally took management of Sirjap-II. No one survived there besides Rifleman Tulsiram Thapa, who was captured by the Chinese language however would later handle to sneak out at nighttime.
Main D.S. Thapa, and proper, Thapa receiving the Param Vir Chakra
When All Have been Assumed Lifeless
In the meantime, from the commentary submit at Tokung, one might see smoke clouds rising over the embattled space. A patrol boat was dispatched from the battalion headquarters to take inventory of the state of affairs, led by Naik Rabi Lal Thapa. However barely 1,000 yards from the submit, the boat got here beneath enemy assault and was pressured to show again, assuming that your complete Sirjap submit had collapsed and that Main Thapa and his males had been killed.
Later, when the headquarters determined to evacuate all of the posts in Pangong Tso, together with Yula, Naik Rabi Lal Thapa once more volunteered to guide the trouble. He finally managed to evacuate all of the casualties and the survivors, together with the seven from the Thapa firm and others from Yula-III. As for Yula-I and Yula-II, the Chinese language surrounded each and minimize off all escape routes for the posts. The Indians fought until the ammo ran out, however when communication died, all the lads there have been assumed to have been killed in motion.
The Indian troopers fought until the final bullet. The seven males from the Thapa firm who managed to be rescued at nighttime of the night time by boats later recounted how the enemy had lined up and shot useless all of the severely wounded personnel who could not stroll. In whole, the Gorkhas misplaced 33 males on the battles of Sirjap and Yula. Rifleman Tulsiram Thapa obtained the Vir Chakra, Naik Rabi Lal Thapa was awarded the Mahavir Chakra, and Main Dhan Singh Thapa bought the Paramvir Chakra (initially posthumously). In 1963, all the lads taken as PoWs, together with Main Dhan Singh Thapa, had been repatriated to India.
(All photographs courtesy of the writer)
(Jai Samota is a scholar and author from Barisadri, Chittorgarh, Rajasthan, and writer of ‘Main Shaitan Singh, PVC: The Man in Half Gentle’)
Disclaimer: These are the private opinions of the writer
