Battle of Asal Uttar

Battle of Asal Uttar
	Part of Indo-Pakistani War of 1965
	File:Pattonb.jpg; Captured Pakistani tanks on display near Bhikhiwind, India
Date	September 8–10, 1965
Location	Asal Uttar (Tarn Taran Sahib, Punjab, India)
Result	Indian victory.
Belligerents
; India	; Pakistan
Commanders and leaders
Maj. Gen. Gurbaksh Singh; Brigadier Thomas K. Theograj	Maj. Gen. Nasir Ahmed Khan Brigadier A.R.Shami†
Strength
45 Centurions,; 45 Shermans,; 45 AMX-13	4 Cavalry(44 Patton tanks) 5 Horse (44xPatton) 6 Lancers (44x Patton) 24 Cavalry (44x Patton) 12 Cavalry (44x M24 Chaffee) 19 Lancers (44x Patton)
Casualties and losses
10 tanks destroyed or damaged	100 tanks destroyed or abandoned

The Battle of Asal Uttar (Punjabi and Hindi for Battle of Definitive Reply or more appropriately Fitting Response) was one of the largest tank battles fought during the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965. It was fought from September 8 through September 10, 1965, when the Pakistan Army thrust its tanks and infantry into Indian territory, capturing the Indian town of Khem Karan 5 km from the International Border.^[7] The Indian troops retaliated, and after three days of bitter fighting, the battle ended with the Pakistani forces being repulsed near Asal Uttar. Factors that contributed to this were the conditions of the plains, better Indian tactics and a successful Indian strategy.^[5]

War historians, including Dr. Philip Towle, regard the Indian resistance near Khem Karan as one of the key turning points of the war, one which tilted the balance of the war in favor of India.^[6] Peter Wilson states^[8] that the defeat of Pakistan Army in the battle of Asal Uttar was one of the greatest defeats suffered by Pakistan forces in the course of Indo-Pakistan war of 1965.^[8]

Battle[]

Pakistan's invading force, consisting of the 1st Armoured Division and 11th Infantry Division, crossed the International Border and captured the Indian town of Khem Karan. After the seizure, the Indian Army regrouped and launched a counterattack. Indian troops flooded the area, which slowed the advance of the Pakistani tanks down and successfully brought them inside a horse-shoe formation, a trap where the advancing Pakistani troops were ambushed and repelled. 100 Pakistani tanks were either destroyed or captured while the Indians, by their account, lost only 10 tanks during this offensive.^[9]

Conclusion[]

Despite the initial thrust of the Pakistani Army into Indian territory, the battle ended in a decisive Indian victory.^[8] The commander of Pakistani forces Maj. Gen. Nasir Ahmed Khan himself was fatally hit in the battle.^[8] According to military historian Steven Zaloga, Pakistan admitted that it lost 165 tanks during the 1965 war, more than half of which were knocked out during the "debacle" of Asal Uttar.^[4]

Pervez Musharraf, later Army Chief of Staff and President of Pakistan, participated in this battle as a lieutenant of artillery in the 16 (SP) Field Regiment, 1st Armoured Division Artillery. The battle also witnessed the personal bravery of an Indian soldier, Abdul Hamid, who was honoured with the Param Vir Chakra, India's highest military award, for knocking out seven^[10] enemy tanks with a recoilless gun.^[11]

This battle led to the creation of Patton Nagar (or "Patton City") at the site of the battle. This is because a large number of Patton tanks fielded by the Pakistani forces were either captured or destroyed at the scene.^[4]

Gallery[]

Forces[]

Forces of the opposing sides during the battle;^[12]

Pakistan Forces[]

7th Battalion, Punjab Regiment
7th Battalion, Baluch Regiment
12th Battalion, Baluch Regiment

Indian Forces[]

References[]

↑ ^1.0 ^1.1 ^1.2 ^1.3 ^1.4 ^1.5 ^1.6 History, Official. "All out war pg 39". Official History of 1965 war. Times of India. Archived from the original on 9 June 2011. http://web.archive.org/web/20110609072642/http://www.bharat-rakshak.com/LAND-FORCES/Army/History/1965War/PDF/1965Chapter06.pdf. Retrieved 16 July 2011.
↑ Amin, Agha Humayun. "The Battle of Lahore and Pakistans Main Attack in 1965". Military Historian. AH Amin. http://pakistan-army-interviews.blogspot.com/2011/06/battle-of-lahore-pakistans-main-attack.html. Retrieved 17 July 2011.
↑ Singh, Lt.Gen Harbaksh (191). War Despatches. New Delhi: Lancer International. pp. 108. ISBN 81-7062-117-8.
↑ ^4.0 ^4.1 ^4.2 Zaloga, Steve. The M47 and M48 Patton tanks. Osprey Publishing, 1999. ISBN 978-1-85532-825-9.
↑ ^5.0 ^5.1 Wilson, Peter. Wars, proxy-wars and terrorism: post independent India. Mittal Publications, 2003. ISBN 978-81-7099-890-7.
↑ ^6.0 ^6.1 Jaques, Tony. Dictionary of Battles and Sieges. Greenwood Publishing Group, 2007. ISBN 978-0-313-33538-9. ^{[page needed]} Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; name "Jaques" defined multiple times with different content
↑ R.D. Pradhan & Yashwantrao Balwantrao Chavan (2007). 1965 War, the Inside Story: Defence Minister Y.B. Chavan's Diary of India-Pakistan War.. Atlantic Publishers & Distributors. p. 47. ISBN 978-81-269-0762-5. http://books.google.com/books?id=ymYCJQjEGBUC&pg=PA47.
↑ ^8.0 ^8.1 ^8.2 ^8.3 Wilson, Peter. Wars, proxy-wars and terrorism: post independent India. Mittal Publications. pp. 83–84. ISBN 81-7099-890-5. http://books.google.co.in/books?id=qYK0BhcgwaQC&lpg=PA157&ots=8VGWdxPcuZ&dq=Wars%2C%20proxy-wars%20and%20terrorism%3A%20post%20independent%20India&pg=PA84#v=onepage&q=uttar&f=false.
↑ Zaloga, Steve; Jim Laurie (1999). The M47 and M48 Patton tanks. Osprey. p. 33. ISBN 978-1-85532-825-9.
↑ Maj Gen Cardozo, Ian (2003). PARAM VIR. New Delhi: Lotus Collection. ISBN 81-7436-262-2
↑ The Param Vir Chakra Winners' home page for Company Quarter Master Havildar Abdul Hamid indianarmy.nic.in
↑ https://web.archive.org/web/20071028081917/http://www.regiments.org/wars/20thcent/65indopk.htm

Resources[]

1965 Official War History, Ministry of Defence, Government of India
"The Battle of Assal Uttar: Pakistan and India 1965". Orbat.com. February 24, 2002. http://orbat.com/site/history/historical/india/assaluttar.html.

External links[]

Pictures of the Patton Nagar

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All or a portion of this article consists of text from Wikipedia, and is therefore Creative Commons Licensed under GFDL.
The original article can be found at Battle of Asal Uttar and the edit history here.

[Chapt_5_official_history-1] 1.0 ^1.1 ^1.2 ^1.3 ^1.4 ^1.5 ^1.6 History, Official. "All out war pg 39". Official History of 1965 war. Times of India. Archived from the original on 9 June 2011. http://web.archive.org/web/20110609072642/http://www.bharat-rakshak.com/LAND-FORCES/Army/History/1965War/PDF/1965Chapter06.pdf. Retrieved 16 July 2011.

[amin_asal_uttar-2] Amin, Agha Humayun. "The Battle of Lahore and Pakistans Main Attack in 1965". Military Historian. AH Amin. http://pakistan-army-interviews.blogspot.com/2011/06/battle-of-lahore-pakistans-main-attack.html. Retrieved 17 July 2011.

[War_Despatches-3] Singh, Lt.Gen Harbaksh (191). War Despatches. New Delhi: Lancer International. pp. 108. ISBN 81-7062-117-8.

[Zaloga-4] 4.0 ^4.1 ^4.2 Zaloga, Steve. The M47 and M48 Patton tanks. Osprey Publishing, 1999. ISBN 978-1-85532-825-9.

[Wilson-5] 5.0 ^5.1 Wilson, Peter. Wars, proxy-wars and terrorism: post independent India. Mittal Publications, 2003. ISBN 978-81-7099-890-7.

[Jaques-6] 6.0 ^6.1 Jaques, Tony. Dictionary of Battles and Sieges. Greenwood Publishing Group, 2007. ISBN 978-0-313-33538-9. ^{[page needed]} Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; name "Jaques" defined multiple times with different content

[pradhan-7] R.D. Pradhan & Yashwantrao Balwantrao Chavan (2007). 1965 War, the Inside Story: Defence Minister Y.B. Chavan's Diary of India-Pakistan War.. Atlantic Publishers & Distributors. p. 47. ISBN 978-81-269-0762-5. http://books.google.com/books?id=ymYCJQjEGBUC&pg=PA47.

[Wilson83-8] 8.0 ^8.1 ^8.2 ^8.3 Wilson, Peter. Wars, proxy-wars and terrorism: post independent India. Mittal Publications. pp. 83–84. ISBN 81-7099-890-5. http://books.google.co.in/books?id=qYK0BhcgwaQC&lpg=PA157&ots=8VGWdxPcuZ&dq=Wars%2C%20proxy-wars%20and%20terrorism%3A%20post%20independent%20India&pg=PA84#v=onepage&q=uttar&f=false.

[Zaloga33-9] Zaloga, Steve; Jim Laurie (1999). The M47 and M48 Patton tanks. Osprey. p. 33. ISBN 978-1-85532-825-9.

[10] Maj Gen Cardozo, Ian (2003). PARAM VIR. New Delhi: Lotus Collection. ISBN 81-7436-262-2

[11] The Param Vir Chakra Winners' home page for Company Quarter Master Havildar Abdul Hamid indianarmy.nic.in

[12] ttps://web.archive.org/web/20071028081917/http://www.regiments.org/wars/20thcent/65indopk.htm

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