India Country.docx

INDIA India also known as the Republic of India or Bhārat Gaṇarājya is a country in South Asia. It is a constitutional republic consisting of 29 states, each with a substantial degree of control over its own affairs. The capital of India is New Delhi. With roughly one-sixth of the world’s total population, India is the second most-populous country, after China. India is one of the oldest civilizations in the world with a kaleidoscopic variety and rich cultural heritage. It has achieved all-round socio-economic progress during the last 70 years of its Independence. LOCATION AND BORDER COUNTRIES The Indian peninsula is separated from mainland Asia by the Himalayas. The Country is surrounded by the Bay of Bengal in the east, the Arabian Sea in the west, and the Indian Ocean to the south. Afghanistan and Pakistan to the north-west; China, Bhutan and Nepal to the north, Myanmar to the east, and Bangladesh to the east of West Bengal. Sri Lanka is separated from India by a narrow channel of sea, formed by Palk Strait and the Gulf of Mannar. POPULATION India's 2018 population is estimated at 1.35 billion based on the most recent UN data. ETHNIC GROUPS AND RELIGIONS India is a diverse multi-ethnic country that is home to thousands of small ethnic and tribal groups. All the five major racial types of ethnic is included Australoid, Mongoloid, Europoid, Caucasian, and Negroid find representation among the people of India. One of the many religions born in India is Hinduism, a collection of diverse doctrines, sects, and ways of life followed by the great majority of the population. Hindus constituted the majority with 79.8%, Muslims came second at 14.2%, followed by Christians with 2.35%, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains, and others.

https://www.britannica.com/place/India/People#ref46403

SINO-INDIAN WAR The Sino-Indian War was a war between China and India that occurred in 1962. A disputed Himalayan border was the main pretext for war, but other issues played a role. China’s perception of India as a threat to its rule of Tibet was also one of the most prominent reasons for the Sino-Indian War. India initiated a Forward Policy in which it placed outposts along the border, including several north of the McMahon Line, the eastern portion of a Line of Actual Control proclaimed by Chinese Premier Zhou Enlai in 1959. Unable to reach political accommodation on disputed territory along the 3,225 km long Himalayan border, the Chinese launched simultaneous offensives in Ladakh and across the McMahon Line on 20th October 1962, coinciding with the Cuban Missile Crisis. The Sino-Indian War is notable for the harsh mountain conditions under which much of the fighting took place, entailing large-scale combat at altitudes of over 4,000 metres. The war was also noted for the non-deployment of the navy or air force by either the Chinese or Indian side. Towards the end of the war India increased its support for Tibetan refugees and revolutionaries, some of them having settled in India, as they were fighting the same common enemy in the region. The war that began on 20th October 1962, continued for about a month. The standoff between approximately 10,000-20,000 Indian troops and 80,000 Chinese troops ended on 21st November after China declared a ceasefire. LOCATION (Border) China and India shared a long border, sectioned into three stretches by Nepal, Sikkim (then an Indian protectorate), and Bhutan, which follows the Himalayas between Burma and what was then West Pakistan. A number of disputed regions lie along this border. Aksai Chin- It is administered by China as part of Hotan County which lies in the south western part of Hotan Prefecture of Xinjiang Autonomous Region, but is also claimed by India as a part of the Ladakh district of the state of Jammu and Kashmir. Aksai Chin covers an area of about 37,244 sq. km and area is largely a vast highaltitude desert. China National Highway 219 runs through Aksai Chin connecting Lazi and Xinjiang in the Tibet Autonomous Region. Arunal Pradesh - It is the largest among the North-east Indian states commonly known as the Seven Sister States. China claims the northern part of the state as a part of the Tibet Autonomous Region. The NEFA (North-East Frontier Agency) was created in 1955, the re-emergence of the

issue was a major cause of the Sino-Indian War of 1962. Tawang- Tawang district is one of the 16 administrative districts of Arunachal Pradesh. The area is historically Tibetan territory and is claimed by both the People's Republic of China and the Republic of China as a part of South Tibet. THE WAR The cause of the war was a dispute over the sovereignty of the widely separated Aksai Chin and Arunachal Pradesh border regions. Aksai Chin, claimed by India to belong to Kashmir and by China to be part of Xinjiang, contains an important road link that connects the Chinese regions of Tibet and Xinjiang. China's construction of this road was one of the triggers of the conflict. From 1959 forward, border skirmishes broke out along the disputed line. In 1961, Nehru instituted the Forward Policy, in which India tried to establish border outposts and patrols north of Chinese positions, in order to cut them off from their supply line. The Chinese responded in kind, each side seeking to flank the other without direct confrontation. The summer and fall of 1962 saw increasing numbers of border incidents in Aksai Chin. One June skirmish killed more than twenty Chinese troops. In July, India authorized its troops to fire not only in self- defence but to drive the Chinese back. By October, even as Zhou Enlai was personally assuring Nehru in New Delhi that China did not want war, the People's Liberation Army of China (PLA) was massing along the border. The first heavy fighting took place on October 10, 1962, in a skirmish that killed 25 Indian troops and 33 Chinese soldiers. On October 20, the PLA launched a two-pronged attack, seeking to drive the Indians out of Aksai Chin. Within two days, China had seized the entire territory. The main force of the Chinese PLA was 10 miles (16 kilometres) south of the line of control by October 24. During a three-week ceasefire, Zhou Enlai ordered the Chinese to hold their position, as he sent a peace proposal to Nehru. The Chinese proposal was that both sides disengage and withdraw twenty kilometres from their current positions.

Nehru responded that the

Chinese troops needed to withdraw to their original position instead, and he called for a wider buffer zone. On November 14, 1962, the war resumed with an Indian attack against the Chinese position at Walong.

FINAL BATTLE (Result) After hundreds more deaths, and an American threat to intervene on behalf of the Indians, the two sides declared a formal ceasefire on November 21 ending a month-long birder battle. The Chinese announced that they would withdraw from their present positions to the north of the illegal McMahon Line. However, the isolated troops in the mountains did not hear about the ceasefire for several days and engaged in additional firefights. Prime Minister Nehru was roundly criticized at home for his pacifism in the face of Chinese aggression, and for the lack of preparation prior to the Chinese attack. In the end, China retained actual control of the Aksai Chin region. CASUALITIES The war lasted just one month but killed 1,383 Indian troops and 722 Chinese troops. An additional 1,047 Indians and 1,697 Chinese were wounded, and nearly 4,000 Indian soldiers were captured. Many of the casualties were caused by the harsh conditions at 14,000 feet, rather than by enemy fire. Hundreds of the wounded on both sides died of exposure before their comrades could get medical attention for them. AFTERMATH According to the China's official military history, the war achieved China's policy objectives of securing borders in its western sector, as China retained de facto control of the Aksai Chin. After the war, India abandoned the Forward Policy, and the de facto borders stabilised along the Line of Actual Control. The aftermath of the war saw sweeping changes in the Indian military to prepare it for similar conflicts in the future, and placed pressure on Indian Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru, who was seen as responsible for failing to anticipate the Chinese attack on India. Indians reacted with a surge in patriotism and memorials were erected for many of the Indian troops who died in the war. Arguably, the main lesson India learned from the war was the need to strengthen its own defences and a shift from Nehru's foreign policy with China based on his stated concept of "brotherhood".

https://www.mapsofindia.com/my-india/politics/why-the-india-china-war-happened https://www.indiatoday.in/india/video/no-political-pressure-or-interference-fromcentre-j-k-governor-on-sajad-lone-1397169-2018-11-27

KARGIL WAR (3 May – 26 July 1999) The Kargil War, also known as the Kargil conflict, was an armed conflict between India and Pakistan that took place between 3 May and 26 July 1999 in the Kargil district of Kashmir and elsewhere along the Line of Control (LOC). In India, the conflict is also referred to as Operation Vijay which was the name of the Indian operation to clear the Kargil sector. The cause of the war was the infiltration of Pakistani soldiers and Kashmiri militants into positions on the Indian side of the Line of Control, which serves as the de facto border between the two nations. Pakistan blamed the fighting entirely on independent Kashmiri insurgents. However, documents left behind by casualties and later statements by Pakistan's Prime Minister and Army Chief showed involvement of Pakistani paramilitary forces. The Indian Army, supported by the air force, attacked the Pakistani positions and, with international diplomatic support, eventually forced a Pakistani withdrawal across the Line of Control (LOC). The standoff between approximately 10,000-20,000 Indian troops and 80,000 Chinese troops ended on 21st November after China declared a ceasefire.

LOCATION The war is occur at the Kargil District, Kashmir that is between India and Pakistan border. The town of Kargil is located 205 km (127 mi) from Srinagar, facing the Northern Areas across the Line of Control (LOC). Like other areas in the Himalayas, Kargil has a continental climate. Summers are cool with frigid nights, while winters are long and chilly with temperatures often dropping to −48 °C (−54 °F). The combination of thin air, cold weather and rugged mountains has dramatic effects on men and their equipment. Reduced oxygen leads to a variety of physiological changes and illnesses, some of which can prove fatal. Low air pressure alters the accuracy and range of both weaponry and aircraft. Cold weather incapacitates soldiers and degrades equipment. Mountainous terrain makes all aspects of warfare more difficult. THE WAR There were three major phases to the Kargil War. First, Pakistan infiltrated forces into the Indian-controlled section of Kashmir. The next stage consisted of India discovering the infiltration and mobilizing forces to respond to it. The final stage

involved major battles by Indian and Pakistani forces. Because the Pakistani soldiers and terrorists had positioned themselves at higher altitudes, it gave them an advantage in combat, as they could fire down at advancing Indian troops. Pakistan shot down two Indian fighter jets while another fighter jet crashed during the operation. Pakistan asked the US to intervene, but then President Bill Clinton declined to do so until Pakistani troops were withdrawn from the Line of Control. As Pakistani troops withdrew, the Indian armed forces attacked the rest of the outposts, managing to get back the last of them by July 26. In addition, the Kargil War is also involved with few other battle and operation that include the Operation Vijay, Operation Safed Sagar and Operation Talwar. OPERATION VIJAY - LAND OPERATIONS The Indian Army launched “Operation Vijay”, a mobilisation of 200,000 Indian troops. However, because of the nature of the terrain, division and corps operations could not be mounted, subsequent fighting was conducted mostly at the regimental or battalion level. In effect, two divisions of the Indian Army, numbering 20,000, plus several thousand from the Paramilitary forces of India. The total number of Indian soldiers that were involved in the military operation on the Kargil-Drass sector was thus close to 30,000. The number of infiltrators, including those providing logistical backup, has been put at approximately 5,000 at the height of the conflict. This figure includes troops from Pakistan-administered Kashmir who provided additional artillery support. OPERATION SAFED SAGAR - AIR OPERATION The Indian Air Force launched “Operation Safed Sagar” in support of the mobilization of Indian land forces, but its effectiveness during the war was limited by the high altitude and weather conditions, which in turn limited bomb loads and the number of airstrips that could be used. OPERATION TALWAR - NAVAL OPERATION The Indian Navy also prepared to blockade the Pakistani ports to cut off supply routes under “Operation Talwar”. The Indian Navy's western and eastern fleets joined in the North Arabian Sea and began aggressive patrols and threatened to cut Pakistan’s sea trade. This exploited Pakistan's dependence on sea based oil and trade

flows. Later, then-Prime Minister of Pakistan, Nawaz Sharif disclosed that Pakistan was left with just six days of fuel to sustain itself if a full-scale war had broken.

FINAL BATTLE (Result) On 26 July 1999, India regains possession of Kargil and that is decisive Indian victory. The Indian army launched its final attacks in the last week of July, as soon as the Drass subsector had been cleared of Pakistani forces, the fighting ceased on July 26. The Army declared the mission successful on July 26, 1999, since then the day has been celebrated annually as Kargil Vijay Diwas. By the end of the war, Pakistan had to withdraw under international pressure and due to pressure from continued fighting at battle front and left India in control of all territory south and east of the Line of Control, as was established in July 1972 as per the Simla Agreement. CASUALITIES The victory came at a high price. The official death toll on the both side was Pakistan confirmed that 453 soldiers were killed meanwhile India gave its official casualty figures as 527 killed and 1,363 wounded. AFTERMATH From the end of the war until February 2000, the Indian stock market rose by more than 30%. The next Indian national budget included major increases in military spending. After the war, the Indian government severed ties with Pakistan and increased defence preparedness. India increased its defence budget as it sought to acquire more state of the art equipment. Kashmir became the nuclear flash point and Kargil issue was made internationalized. India and Pakistan both came to know their potentials. Pakistan’s foreign policy was failed and the propagator front was proved a total collapse. Shortly after declaring itself a nuclear weapons state, Pakistan had been humiliated diplomatically and militarily. Faced with the possibility of international isolation, the already fragile Pakistan economy was weakened further. The morale of Pakistan forces after the withdrawal declined as many units of the Northern Light Infantry suffered heavy casualties. The government refused to accept the dead bodies of many officers an issue that provoked outrage and protests in the Northern Areas because Pakistan initially did not acknowledge many of its casualties.

https://www.globalsecurity.org/military/world/war/kargil-99.htm https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/defence/all-you-need-to-know-aboutkargil-war/gallantry-awards/slideshow/59772219.cms