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| The Indian Army’s first Dakota aircraft, with Lieutenant Colonel D.R. Rai and Army soldiers on board, arrived at the Srinagar airfield 75 years ago. |
On the 75th anniversary of its landing in Jammu & Kashmir on October 27, 1947, the Indian Army re-enacted an aviation induction exercise at Srinagar’s technical airport on Wednesday.
Key Highlights
- The Indian Army on Wednesday re-enacted an air induction exercise at Srinagar’s technical airport to commemorate the 75th year of its arrival in Jammu & Kashmir on October 27, 1947.The Army’s daredevil paratroopers demonstrated skydiving to mark the occasion.
- Old city shutdownMeanwhile, a spontaneous shutdown was observed in Srinagar’s old city, a separatist hub, on the occasion.
To commemorate the event, the Army’s daredevil paratroopers performed a skydive. There was also a movie clip and a theater performance showing the events of Pakistan’s invasion of Kashmir in 1947, as well as the involvement of local Maqbool Sherwani and Kashmiri women militia in the defense of Kashmir.
“It was the Pakistan Army, camouflaged as Pashtun tribals, who, upon arriving in Baramulla, wreaked havoc and rampaged the entire town; killing, robbing, and looting the innocents; burning houses, hospitals, and churches,” claimed J&K Lieutenant-Governor Manoj Sinha.
He also paid tribute to the families of Kashmir’s defenders by placing a flower wreath at the war memorial.
“The first landmark military action of Independent India was the historic air landing operation executed by the Indian Army and Air Force in the face of the enemy, and the subsequent eviction of Pakistani forces,” L-G Sinha remarked.
The Indian Army’s first Dakota aircraft, with Lieutenant Colonel D.R. Rai and Army soldiers on board, arrived at the Srinagar airfield 75 years ago.
“I salute the valor of Jammu Kashmir’s eternal heroes and saviors – Brigadier Rajinder Singh, Major Somnath Sharma, Lt. Col. Rai, Maqbool Sherwani, and all those magnificent people who gave their lives to save J&K from the Pakistan Army’s invasion,” the L-G remarked.
He stated that the younger generation must be informed about Pakistan’s brutal actions, which have resulted in the deaths of thousands of innocent people. “They must be aware of the atrocities perpetrated by the neighboring country, which is also the world’s largest sponsor of terrorism,” he continued.
While recalling the events of 1947, Lieutenant General D.P. Pandey, General Officer Commanding of the 15 Corps, paid tribute to all the troops who were martyred in the Pakistan Army’s October 1947 attack.
Air Marshal Amit Dev, the Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief of Western Air Command, who also spoke at the event, said the Air Force was completely equipped to cope with the drone problem in J&K.
“We don’t have a strategy [to seize it] right now,” he added of Pakistan-occupied Kashmir, “but it will happen one day because the people of Kashmir on the other side of the border aren’t being treated fairly.”
The velocity of technological development, he said, was the primary problem facing the forces. He said, “We have to keep up with that.”
Shutdown of the old city
Meanwhile, in Srinagar’s old city, a separatist hotspot, a spontaneous shutdown was held on the day.
At Rajouri Kadal, Gojwara, Nowhatta, and the Naqsbandh Sahib Road, all shops were closed. To keep protesters at away, security officers were deployed in greater numbers in the region.