Kargil conflict and recent Chinese intrusion have similarities: Defence Expert

Indian Army in Kargil fighting Pakistan, to take back the territory occupied was a full-scale war fought between traditional not-so-friendly neighbours. ‘Operation Vijay’ was termed successful on this day 21 years ago when India won a decisive victory. Defining the similarities between the Kargil war in 1999 and recent Chinese intrusion in eastern Ladakh, eminent defence expert, Vikram Jit Singh in an exclusive interview with, ETV Bharat News Coordinator, Khursheed Wani, discussed how the Galwan valley clash resulted in the capture of several strategic locations and also recalled the events of the day when Singh reported the Kargil war from the high altitude battle zone.

Hyderabad: The Kargil war was fought between India and Pakistan between May and July 1999 in the Kargil district of Kashmir and along the Line of Control (LOC). There are a lot of similarities between the 1999 Kargil conflict and the Chinese intrusion in eastern Ladakh that resulted in the capture of several strategic locations in Galwan Valley and Pangong Tso areas.

In an exclusive interview with ETV Bharat News Coordinator, Khursheed Wani, eminent defence expert, Vikram Jit Singh discussed the prominent issues of regarding Chinese intrusion in eastern Ladakh and also recalled the events of the day when he reported the Kargil war from the high altitude battle zone.

On the occasion of 21st anniversary of Kargil war, speaking to ETV Bharat, Singh said, "There are a lot of similarities between the 1999 Kargil conflict and the Chinese intrusion recently. The Kargil incursion was discovered on May 3 in the Batalik sector and the Chinese incursion was also detected on May 5 in the Galwan region. Unlike Kargil, the Chinese incursion has a potential of two-front collusive war while China refused to back-up Pakistan back in 1999."

"In 1999, Atal Bihari Vajpayee led government told foreign minister Sartaj Aziz that there will be no talks with Pakistan unless it withdraws from the LoC. And, in the present situation, India has not applied military force to evict the intrusion but is using political and diplomatic channels to restore the status quo ante of May 5, 2020," Singh explained.

"It was interesting that the first intrusion in Kargil was detected in the area of responsibility of 3 Punjab regiment while as the same regiment was also on the battle-ground along-with other regiments on June 15 night, when the Chinese troops had a hand-on-hand battle with the Indian army. Interestingly, both Kargil and Galwan incursions took place in the area of responsibility of 3 Infantry division. The Chinese did not support Pakistan in 1999 but this time there is a possibility that a two-front collusive action can take place," he said.

"It is more than two and a half months, there is no firing of bullets while in Kargil, it was a massive Diwali every night. Heavy weaponry has been moved to positions but they have yet not been given the order to fire a single bullet. The Pakistani plot to intrude into Kargil was a tactical brilliance but strategic blunder. India put up a firm resolve to counter Pakistan and the effectiveness of artillery turned the table against it," he said.

Answering to the question that why journalists were not allowed to cover Galwan intrusion, Singh said, "It is a bit embarrassing for the government to show Chinese coming over and taking long stretches of land. The journalists are relying on government sources. During the Kargil war, satellite phones helped journalists in filing their stories but in Galwan, it is the satellite imagery that has been helpful.

Recalling his experience during Kargil war, Singh said," To cover anti-insurgency operations in Kashmir along-with the army that earned me permission from the army authorities to report from the high altitude battle zone. I had asked a Commanding Officer to write his will for the family when the troops came under heavy artillery fire while crossing a narrow ridgeline."

He recalled how a Subedar of JAKLI regiment gave him the advice to prevent his head to save a life during the barrage of mortar shelling. "Subedar Karan Singh said: Apna sir zaroor bachana, agar sir ko kuch ho gaya, hum kuch nahi karsakte, agar latun ko kuch hua to hum nayi dengay (please save your head because we can do anything if it is ripped off. If legs are ripped off, we can have the alternatives).

Notably, during the war, the Indian Army evicted Pakistani intruders and succeeded in recapturing the Tiger Hill and other posts as a part of Operation Vijay. In order to commemorate India’s win in the war, the Kargil Vijay Diwas is celebrated every year on July 26.