Brig Vikramjit Singh Kochhar, former station commander of the Tibri cantonment, opined that mankind should put an end to war before war puts an end to mankind.
Having said that, he also reminisces how ‘Operation Sindoor’, a swift military response to the Pahalgam terror attack, showcased strong coordination among the army and the Gurdaspur civil administration.
The Brigadier was helming men and military equipment at the Tibri cantonment, widely perceived to be one of the biggest army areas in the country, when the sound of multiple jets moving towards Pakistan was heard by residents of Gurdaspur in the wee hours of a warm May morning. He is now posted somewhere in the Northern sector.
Almost everyone in the city woke up around 3 am as the jets flew above them.
Nobody knew their intention till dawn broke, when news started surfacing that ‘Operation Sindoor’ was under way.
Brig Kochhar knew the importance of collaborating with the district administration to ensure border villages of the district, particularly in the strategic Dera Baba Nanak area, remained safe and secure.
He recalled, “In peace, sons bury their fathers. In war, fathers bury their sons. I did not want this to happen. I took DC Dalwinderjit Singh and SSP Aditya along to visit the border areas.”
“The onus was on me to play an active role in the local security and civil-military relations in the border district which had witnessed the 1965 and 1971 wars from close quarters. Any past mistakes were not to be repeated. We started Operation ‘Rahat’ and set up Village Defence Committees (VDS) in all the border villages. An air-umbrella was created for the Tibri cantonment and adjoining areas by installing Air Defence Systems (ADS). Villagers were told to construct community bunkers. We told them that this war was unlike the earlier wars — then there were no missiles — this time only missiles were used. The villagers felt anxious, but it was quickly replaced by calmness and serenity,” said the Brigadier.
Brig Kochhar further stated that one Pakistani missile had dropped in Pandher village, near Tibri cantonment, after it was neutralised by the ADS.
Villagers recall how scores of army men came to their village minutes after they had heard a loud thud and subsequently cordoned off the entire area, adjoining the Gurdaspur-Mukerian highway.
Army officers say that this battle was a different kind of a fight.
“This time, educational institutes, hospitals, malls and commercial establishments remained open throughout the day during the war. However, as dusk fell, people would reach their homes, anticipating an attack. Everything used to go back to normal the next morning. Blackouts were in place during the hostilities,” noted a senior officer.
The army also laid emphasis on effective emergency response.
Security-related matters including safeguarding sensitive information and protection of military personnel were taken up with the help of the Gurdaspur administration.