THE NEWSPAPERS AND THE TRUTH – AN UNEASY RELATIONSHIP By Maj Gen VK Singh   Twice during the last one week, the Chief Justice of India has spoken about the trustworthiness of our newspapers and news channels. There was a time before the advent of TV and smart phones, when newspapers and radio were the only source of news for the citizenry. Right up to the middle of the 20th Century, before transistors began to used, radios were expensive and could be afforded only by the upper classes. For the common man, the only source of news was the newspaper. It had the advantage of being inex ..read more

  RANK, APPOINTMENT & DESIGNATION By Maj Gen VK Singh   In recent years, there has been a lot of debate on the correct manner of addressing officers of the Armed Forces who have retired from service. Some recommend that the word ‘Retired’ or abbreviation ‘Retd’ should be used after the rank e.g. Colonel (Retd) AB Singh. Others feel that the correct method is to write ‘Retd’ after the name e.g. Colonel AB Singh (Retd).  Army HQ tried to remove the confusion and issued a circular on 21 July 2021 clarifying that the latter option is correct, and the name should be written as Co ..read more

    ADAPTING TO CHANGE - WHY DOES THE ARMY ALWAYS LAG BEHIND? By Maj Gen VK Singh   Change is part of life. With time rules and trends change in every walk of life. In almost all cases, these changes are for the better, and make our lives easier and more comfortable. Fifty years ago, the only way to communicate with family members and friends was the letter sent by post or telegram, unless one had a telephone. Today, even those living in remote areas have mobile phones. Very few people had cameras and one had to rely on professional photographers during important occasions such ..read more

    THE INDIAN NATIONAL ARMY – A BRIEF HISTORY Birth of the INA             The INA was formally created in December 1941 by Captain Mohan Singh of 1/14 Punjab Regiment and Major Fujiwara Iwaichi of the Japanese Army. Mohan Singh claims that after his capture by the Japanese in Malaya on 11 December 1941 he was inspired by a sudden burst of patriotic feeling that had lain dormant until that time.  According to him, he was encouraged by Japanese propaganda that exhorted all Asian races to ‘kick out the white devils from the ..read more

  CHAPTER 7   SUBHAS BOSE & THE INA – SOME UNANSWERED QUESTIONS   The Indian National Army remains an enigma, even today. Throughout its life span of three years, and even later, the INA has generated several controversies and given rise to conundrums some of which remain unsolved. Ironically, during its existence the activities of the INA remained shrouded in mystery and it was only after it ceased to exist that most of these controversies surfaced. Though there is a wealth of literature available about the INA and its leader, Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose, many questions stil ..read more

Comments by Maj Gen VK Singh Watershed 1967 -India’s Forgotten Victory Over China, By Probal DasGupta JUGGERNAUT BOOKS, 2020  (Extracts from the Book are given in normal font, with the comments given below in italics) The book starts with a section titled Praise for the Book. This is the first time I have seen something like this in a book dealing with military history. I will not comment on the contents of the section. After reading the comments given in the succeeding paragraphs, readers can form their own opinions. Introduction (Page 9-12) The twin victories at Cho La and Nathu ..read more

CHAPTER - 7   THE AIR FORCE MUTINY - 1946             The mutiny in the RIAF (Royal Indian Air Force) occurred at almost the same time as the more serious uprisings in the RIN (Royal Indian Navy) and Army units at Jubbulporein February 1946. Many historians prefer to call it a strike rather than a mutiny, since there was no violence and neither was any one punished. However, the term ‘strike’ is seldom used in the armed forces, collective disobedience  always being called a mutiny, irrespective of the number of persons involve ..read more

CHAPTER - 8 THE NAVAL MUTINY – 1946             The mutiny in the RIN (Royal Indian Navy) in February 1946 was unique in many ways. Mutinies are usually confined to a particular station, establishment or ship. However, this was the first instance when the entire service joined the revolt. The closest parallel was the Great Mutiny of 1857, when almost the whole of the Bengal Army was involved; the Madras and Bombay Armies remained virtually unaffected. This was also probably the first time after 1857 when the general public was caught up ..read more

CHAPTER - 9 THE JUBBULPOREMUTINY – 1946 The mutiny at Jubbulpore took place between 27 February and 3 March 1946, about two weeks after the Naval mutiny at Bombay. The men who participated in the mutiny were all Indian Signal Corps personnel posted at the Signal Training Centre at Jubbulpore (now called Jabalpur). According to official sources, 1716 men were involved in the mutiny. The immediate provocation for the revolt was the firing on the naval ratings at Bombayand the harsh punishments awarded to the INA prisoners after the trials at the Red Fort. The men also had certain grievances c ..read more

APPENDIX 6  BIBLIOGRAPHY Books and Articles Ahmad, Lieutenant Colonel Mustasad, Living Upto Heritage - The Rajputs, New Delhi: Lancer, 1997. Antia, Lieutenant Colonel S.N. “United Nations Emergency Force: Its Creation and Problems”, The Signalman, January 1958 Bajwa, Major General K.S., Jammu and KashmirWar (1947-48) – Political and Military Perspective, New Delhi: Har-Anand Publications. Barreto, Brigadier T., History of the Corps of Signals, Volume 1 – Early Times to Outbreak of Second World War (1939) New Delhi: The Corps of Signals Association, Second Edition, 2006. Cardozo, Ma ..read more