Sagat Singh
3 Gorkha Rifles | |
---|---|
Commands held |
|
Battles/wars | |
Awards | Padma Bhushan Param Vishisht Seva Medal |
Early life and education
Singh was born in a Rajput family in the village of Kusumdesar in Churu region of Bikaner State on 14 July 1919 to Brijlal Singh Rathore of Kusumdesar and a Bhati lady, Jadao Kanwar of Hadla. Brijlal was a soldier in the Bikaner Ganga Risala who served in Mesopotamia, Palestine and France during World War I. He was recalled to service at the outbreak of World War II and retired as an Honorary Captain. Sagat was the oldest of three brothers and six sisters, he completed his schooling from Walter Nobles High School at Bikaner in 1936.[1]
Bikaner Ganga Risala
Singh joined Dungar College at Bikaner but right after his intermediate exam in 1938, he was enrolled as a Naik in the Bikaner Ganga Risala. Later, he was promoted to Jemadar (now called Naib Subedar) and given command of a platoon.[2]
World War II
With the outbreak of
Singh, with the Sadul Light Infantry, then moved Jubair in Iraq. He was appointed the unit's Military Transport Officer after having obtained an instructor grading in the Military Transport Course. He later served as adjutant and then took command of a company. After a staff stint at the sub area headquarters, he was selected to attend the Middle East Staff College at Haifa. He was the only State Forces officer to be selected. After completing the staff course, he was appointed General Staff Officer Grade 3 (GSO III) at Headquarters 40th Indian Infantry Brigade in Ahvaz, Iran.[4]
In September 1944, Singh rejoined his battalion and was appointed adjutant. He was selected to attend the
Indian Army
In 1949, Singh was transferred to the Indian Army and joined the
In February 1955, Singh was promoted to the rank of
After a 2+1⁄2-year stint, in May 1960, he was promoted to the rank of colonel and posted to Army HQ as deputy director personnel services in the Adjutant-General's branch.[5] Here, his good work brought him to the notice of the Adjutant-General Lieutenant General P P Kumaramangalam.[9] In September 1961, Singh was promoted to the rank of brigadier and given command of India's only parachute brigade, the elite 50th Parachute Brigade at Agra. This was unprecedented as command of the brigade is not given to non-para officers. At the age of 42, he immediately earned his maroon beret and his Parachutist badge by making the required number of jumps.[9][5]
Liberation of Goa
In late November 1961, Singh was summoned to the Military Operations directorate at Army HQ for the planning of the
Hostilities at Goa began at 09:45 on 17 December 1961, when a unit of Indian troops attacked and occupied the town of Maulinguém in the north east, killing two Portuguese soldiers.[10] On the morning of 18 December, Singh moved the brigade into Goa in three columns:
- The eastern column comprised the 2 Para advanced towards the town of Ponda in central Goa via Usgão.
- The central column consisting of the 1 Para advanced towards Panaji via the village of Banastari.
- The western column—the main thrust of the attack—comprised the 2 Sikh LI as well as an armoured division which crossed the border at 06:30 and advanced on Tivim.[10]
Although the 50th Para Brigade was charged with merely assisting the main thrust conducted by the 17th Infantry Division, its units moved rapidly across minefields, roadblocks and four riverine obstacles to be the first to reach the capital of Goa,
The brigade was in Goa till June 1962. After moving back to Agra, Singh led the brigade for another year-and-a-half, until January 1964. He was selected to attend the prestigious National Defence College (NDC). He joined the 4th NDC course and graduated in January 1965. He was then appointed Brigadier General Staff (BGS) at HQ XI Corps at Jalandhar.[5]
General Officer
After a short stint as BGS, in July 1965, Singh was promoted to the rank of major general and appointed general officer commanding (GOC) 17 Mountain Division, the division which had participated in the Goa operations. The division had since moved to Sikkim and was on the Indo-China border.[5] During this stint, the Nathu La and Cho La clashes took place, where 17 Mountain Division achieved "decisive tactical advantage" and defeated the Chinese forces in these clashes.[13][14]
In December 1967, Singh was appointed GOC 101 Communication Zone in
After a stint of three years as GOC 101 Communication zone, Singh was promoted to the rank of
Indo-Pakistani War of 1971
During the
For his leadership and command for the race to Dhaka, the Government of India honored Lt. Gen. Sagat Singh with the third highest civilian award of Padma Bhushan.[19] Lt. Gen. Sagat Singh is the only other Corps commander besides Lt. Gen. (later Gen. and COAS) T N Raina and Lt. Gen. Sartaj Singh to be so awarded in 1971.
Lt. Gen. Sagat Singh died at the Army Hospital Research and Referral, New Delhi on 26 September 2001.[20]
Personal life
Singh married Kamla Kumari on 27 January 1947; Kamla was daughter of the
In Popular Culture
Sagat Singh's character was played by
See also
- Annexation of Goa
- Indo-Pakistani War of 1971
- Meghna Heli Bridge
- Pakistani Instrument of Surrender
Further reading
- Col. C L Proudfoot, Flash of the Khukri: History of the 3rd Gorkha Rifles Regiment, Vision Books
- Air Chief Marshal My Years with the IAF, Lancer International
- Maj. Gen. Afsir Karim, The Story of India’s Airborne Troops, Lancer International
- Brigadier Siddiq Salik, Witness to Surrender, Vikas Publications
- Maj. Gen. Sukhwant Singh, The liberation of Bangladesh, Vikas Publications
- Maj. Gen. Lachman Singh Lehl, Victory in Bangladesh, Natraj Publications
- Maj Gen Randhir Sinh, A Talent for War: The Military Biography of Lt Gen Sagat Singh, Vij Books
- Maj Gen DK Palit, War in the High Himalayas, Lancers
- Brig RS Sodhi, Operation Windfall, Allied Publishers
- Brig Jagdev Singh, Dismemberment of Pakistan, Lancers
- Maj Gen VK Singh, Leadership in the Indian Army, Sage Publishers
- Maj Gen AK Verma, The Bridge on the River Meghna, KW Publishers
Citations
- ^ Sinh 2013, p. 17-18.
- ^ Sinh 2013, p. 19.
- ^ Sinh 2013, p. 20.
- ^ Sinh 2013, p. 22-23.
- ^ a b c d e f g Singh 2005.
- ^ Sinh 2013, p. 25.
- ^ Sinh 2013, p. 26.
- ^ a b Sinh 2013, p. 30-31.
- ^ a b Sinh 2013, p. 42.
- ^ a b Chakravorty, B.C. "Operation Vijay". Bharat Rakshak. Archived from the original on 31 March 2014. Retrieved 12 June 2014.
- ^ Mohan, P. V. S. Jagan (November–December 2001). "Remembering Sagat Singh (1918–2001)". Bharat Rakshak Monitor. 4 (3). Archived from the original on 4 February 2013. Retrieved 12 June 2014.
- ^ "Remembering Sagat Singh (1918-2001) - Bharat Rakshak - Indian Army & Land Forces". www.bharat-rakshak.com. Archived from the original on 21 September 2020. Retrieved 27 November 2020.
- ^ "Army commemorating war hero Lt Gen Sagat Singh's birth centenary". Outlook. 10 July 2019. Archived from the original on 30 September 2022. Retrieved 11 May 2020.
- ^ Van Praagh 2003, p. 301.
- ^ "GALLANTRY AND DISTINGUISHED SERVICE AWARDS FOR DEFENCE PERSONNEL" (PDF). archive.pib.gov.in. Archived (PDF) from the original on 5 December 2020. Retrieved 24 October 2021.
- ^ "NEW ADJUTANT-GENERAL" (PDF). archive.pib.gov.in. Archived (PDF) from the original on 29 September 2021. Retrieved 24 October 2021.
- ^ "'If there's B'desh, it's due to Lt Gen Sagat'". Archived from the original on 17 March 2018. Retrieved 17 March 2018.
- ^ "1971 War: Battle of Sylhet-The first Special Heli Borne Operation". Indian Defence Review. 18 December 2019. Archived from the original on 19 July 2020. Retrieved 19 July 2020.
- ^ "Padma Awards" (PDF). Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India. 2015. Archived from the original (PDF) on 19 October 2017. Retrieved 21 July 2015.
- ^ "Bullet that played with fate of 1971 war - Times of India". The Times of India. 25 August 2017. Archived from the original on 14 June 2018. Retrieved 24 February 2018.
References
- Sinh, Randhir (2013), A Talent for War: The Military Biography of Lt Gen Sagat Singh, Vij Books India Pvt Ltd, ISBN 978-9382652236
- Singh, VK (2005), Leadership in the Indian Army, Sage Publishers, ISBN 978-0761933229
- Van Praagh, David (2003), Greater Game: India's Race with Destiny and China, McGill-Queen's Press - MQUP, ISBN 978-0773525887
External links
- A Talent for War: The Military Biography of Lt Gen Sagat Singh (2013), Maj Gen Randhir Sinh, Vij Books India / ISBN 978-93-82652-23-6
- "Remembering Sagat Singh (1918–2001)" by P.V.S.Jagan Mohan, 12 October 2006 - Bharat Rakshak
- Memorial Service for General Sagat Singh - Press Information Bureau
- Official History of the 1971 India Pakistan War, History Division, Ministry of Defence (India) - Bharat Rakshak