#511 Poem & Quotes Standing Tall: The Courageous Actions of Lieutenant General Harbakhsh Singh in the 1965 War
In Punjab’s soil, sacrifices are sown, Stories of courage are known.
Then was General Harbakhsh Singh, A soldiers’ general, a true king, He had fought many battles before, And in ’65, he took on more.
The charge to lead the western front, And with his troops, he did confront.
But when the chief of the army did call, To withdraw, a command to install. Harbakhsh did not back down, He held his ground, saved Punjab’s crown.
The enemy had a superior force, But Harbakhsh Singh did not lose course. When the army chief ordered him to withdraw, To the Beas river, to save J&K, he saw.
The general did not flinch, he did not bend, He disobeyed orders, to the end. He inspired his men to fight and win, And thus, saved Punjab from a terrible sin.
For if he had obeyed, it would mean, The end of J&K, a nation keen. And 15 Corps that fought so well, Would have been lost, their story to tell.
Harbakhsh was a true hero, A leader with a heart aglow, Padma Vibhushan, he did receive, A grateful nation did believe.
In history, he will be remembered, For the bravery he rendered, The general who saved Punjab’s pride, And with his courage, turned the tide!
CONTEXT
Lieutenant General Harbakhsh Singh was a soldiers’ general with immense battlefield experience who played a crucial role in the 1965 War. He disobeyed the then army chief and took on a superior Pakistani armoured column, and the Indian Centurion tanks outgunned the more modern Pakistani Patton tanks in the battle at Khem Karan, which proved the turning point of the war. Despite being side-stepped to take over 33 Corps at Bagdogra during the 1962 war with China, he achieved professional success during the 1965 war as the Western Army commander responsible for operations in Jammu and Kashmir as well as Punjab. He was critical of General Chaudhury for issuing direct orders to his subordinates bypassing him and failing to visit the front except on three occasions. General Harbakhsh Singh refused to carry out the order to withdraw 11 Corps to hold a line on the Beas river, which would have resulted in bidding goodbye to the entire state of J&K and the army’s 15 Corps that had performed extremely well over there. He was a genuine national hero and was honoured with the Padma Vibhushan by a grateful nation.