India and Pakistan have always had bitter political relations since the partition in 1947 and the Kashmir conflict that followed it. India went on its first war with Pakistan between the years 1947-49 for the Kashmir issue. But the second Indo-Pakistani war happened in 1965, and it was a more intense one. Although India won the war,it led to a lot of destruction and left some families devastated.
Here are some lesser-known facts that you might not know about the Indo-Pakistani war of 1965!
- The war was fought when the weather was extremely cold in Kashmir. The Indian soldiers fought with full vigor and bravery and did not let climate affect them in any way.
- The war had multiple fronts. It was not like a regular war fought on one front. Therefore, the troops had to keep moving in the difficult mountains,and it was very strenuous for the soldiers.
- The Indian Army was very strategic during this war,and they made some deeper inroads inside the Pakistani territory. This helped them destroy many Pakistani weapons and Army vehicles that were important for the Army to win the war.
- The stories of bravery of the Indian soldiers are very popular from this war. They managed to push back the Pakistani soldiers to Lahore and also hoisted the Indian flag over there as a sign of victory. After that, they came back to the Indian territory victoriously.
- One of the major victories of Indian took place when it managed to capture of one the important sites named Haji Pir Pass. This marked as one of the first major victories of Indian soldiers over Pakistan and helped in boosting the morale of the Indian soldiers.
- When it comes to the occupation of land during the war, India managed to occupy as much as 3900 square kilometers of Pakistan’s territory and Pakistan could occupy around 650 square kilometers of India’s area. Hence, it was also a boost to the Indian soldiers who fought with extreme bravery during the war.
- The Indo-Pakistan War of 1965 can easily be called as one of the biggest battles where tanks were used extensively after World War 2. A total of 150 Pakistani tanks and 128 Indian tanks were destroyed during the battle.
- During this war, India lost 4073 combat soldiers while Pakistan lost 2279 in total. This was a big loss for both the countries and there is no way to justify this taking away of lives.
- The United Nations Intervention happened after three weeks of continuous war between both India and Pakistan. After the intervention, both the countries agreed for a ceasefire and the ceasefire was finally declared in September 1965 when soldiers of both India and Pakistan shook hands together in a friendly way.
- After the ceasefire was declared and accepted by both the teams, a Pakistani officer paid a visit to Indian to take permission from the Indian Army and collect the bodies of all the Pakistani soldiers who died in a battle.
Final Words
These are the 10 fascinating facts about the Indo-Pakistani war that took place in 1965. It is true that the Indian soldiers showed extreme patriotism and fought diligently to make India victorious. However, the losses in terms of devastation and human lives were very high during these three weeks of the war.
Many families lost their sons or husbands to this battle in both countries. Hence, it can only be concluded that wars can only bring devastation to both the parties despite the positive or the negative outcome. So, it is best to avoid wars at all costs. Jai Hind!