Hyderabad: At the crack of dawn on October 20, 1962, an uneasy calm in the idyllic sleepy Himalayas in the eastern sector was shattered by heavy artillery shelling from the Chinese at Namka Chu, a mountain stream at the tri-junction of India, Bhutan and Tibet. The Chinese soldiers in no time put an end to Indian resistance at Namka Chu, which led to the Chinese army's progressive taking over of the rest of the Kameng frontier. After Bomdila, about 150 km from Tezpur, fell to the Chinese in the middle of November, panic spread across Assam. There were fears about the possibility of China taking over the whole of Assam. People continued to flee Tezpur even after the Chinese declared a ceasefire.
Sixty-one years later, the Indian army's and more precisely the Air Force's focus remains Tezpur, which has metamorphosed into Assam's bustling town. Indian Air Force’s Garud Commandos, who are experts in missions that include search and rescue operations, protection of critical Air Force bases, and counter-terrorism operations, are on a drill in Jorhat, another adjacent town. From air superiority to counter-terrorism operations, these commandos are trained to face any eventuality. In Assam's Jorhat district, the IAF showed a strategic airlift of the Garud special forces unit.
The IAF inducted a Sukhoi-30 squadron at Jorhat Airforce Station in line with capacity-building in the eastern theatre. Squadron Leader Deepak Gurjar informed that Sukhoi-30 jets are sufficient to tackle any rival aircraft in dogfights. Being equipped with state-of-the-art weaponry; the Garud Commandos commandos are a nightmare for terrorists. The IAF raised the Garud Commando unit in 2004 with the primary aim of protecting Air Force bases from the enemy’s attack. Their roles have changed, adding special reconnaissance missions and rescuing downed pilots from hostile territory. The Garud special forces have proven their mettle in terrorist operations in the Kashmir Valley and air base security.
Garud commandos are key to India's quest for ramped-up special forces capabilities, including cross-border counter-terrorism operations. The Garud commandos carried out a two-week military drill with the air forces of Israel and eight other nations in what is the largest such exercise in Israeli history in 2017.
The 45-member Indian contingent, including 16 Garud commandos, led by Group Captain Maluk Singh, is also closely working with Israel’s select special forces during the Blue Flag aerial training exercise with a focus on learning what makes them excel at special operations. In a rare move, while contingents of other participating nations in the massive 'war drill feature fighter aircraft, the Indian Air Force (IAF) decided to send C-130J Super Hercules aircraft along with Garud commandos who will be training for a week each with Israeli Air Force’s elite units - Unit 5101 (Shaldag Commando unit) and Unit 669 (Airborne Rescue And Evacuation Unit).
