Harbaksh Singh

In April 1939, the battalion received orders to move out of Razmak and prepare to move abroad, the final destination was not known. Moving to Quetta by road, via Bannu, the battalion made its way to Madras on a special troops train. Embarking on passenger ship, they made their way to British Malaya, reaching Singapore after a few days. They then moved to the town of Ipoh, which was their interim station, before reaching Kuantan.

During the withdrawal from Kuantan on 5 January 1942, Singh drove into a Japanese ambush and was seriously injured. He was evacuated to Alexandra Hospital in Singapore where he remained until the Fall of Singapore.[10]

Harbaksh Singh was taken Prisoner of war (POW) on 15 February 1942. He was among the POWs in attendance at the Farrer Park address by Gen Mohan Singh of the First Indian National Army. Singh was to be moved to the Island of Rabaul, but the ship never turned up. He was subsequently slated to be sent to the Death Railway but was sent to the Kluang airfield and handed over to the Imperial Japanese Army Air Service instead. His brother, Lt Col Gurbaksh Singh and his battalion of the Jind Infantry was with him in the same camp. Singh spent the remaining years of the war as a POW in the Kluang camp. he suffered from a bad bout of Typhoid as well as a bad case of Beriberi, a disease he carried all his life. He was repatriated only in September 1945 after cessation of hostilities.[11] He then recuperated at the Military Hospital in Ambala.[12]

During the Indian National Army in Singapore between 1943 and 1945, his brother Lieutenant Colonel Gurbaksh Singh (not to be confused with another INA General Gurbaksh Singh Dhillon) became commander of the INA force housed at Tyersall Park, one of the seven INA military camps, constituted from the POWs of Jind State force, who were jats and other troops mainly from Haryana and Punjab.[13]

By the end of year, Harbaksh Singh joined the Unit's Commanders' Course in Dehradun and in April 1945, was posted as the Second-in-command of the 4th battalion, 11th Sikh Regiment (4/11 Sikh) at Campbellpur (now Attock). In February 1947, he was selected to join the first long course at Staff College, Quetta.[14]

After completing the Staff Course at the Staff College, he was posted as GSO-1 (operations and training), Eastern Command.[15] In October 1947, when Lieutenant Colonel Dewan Ranjit Rai, the Commanding Officer of 1st battalion, Sikh Regiment (1 Sikh) was killed during the Kashmir operations in 1948, he volunteered to command the battalion. However, he was posted as Deputy Commander of the 161 Infantry Brigade. He conducted the main battle against the raiders at Shelatang Bridge on 7 November 1947. This decisive battle, involving 1st battalion Sikh Regiment and 4th battalion Kumaon Regiment, proved to be a turning point in the war.

On 12 December 1947, on hearing about the heavy casualties suffered by 1st battalion Sikh, he proceeded to Uri and took over the command of the battalion voluntarily, dropping a star from his rank. He brought back the battalion to Srinagar and began to rehabilitate it. However, even before the rehabilitation was complete, the battalion was called out to fight the enemy who had crossed the snow-clad Pharikian ki Gali and had occupied Handwara.

He led the truncated battalion, in a daring operations in which, after a series of battles, the battalion drove out the enemy from the valley.

In 1948, he was promoted to the rank of Brigadier and took over the command of 163 Infantry Brigade and began to advance to Tithwal. The movement forward started on 12 May 1948, and after six days, Tithwal was captured. Brigadier Harbaksh Singh was awarded a Vir Chakra for his bravery.[16]

The citation for the Vir Chakra reads as follows:[17][18]

Gazette Notification: 10 Pres 52,26-1-52

Operation: - Date of Award: 1948

CITATION

BRIGADIER HARBAKSH SINGH (IC 31)

COMMANDER 163 BRIGADE (1948)

In May 1948, Brigadier Harbaksh Singh, Commander 163 Brigade, was ordered to advance and capture Tithwal with a view to capturing the enemy's base from where he operated towards the Handwara valley and to cut his advance from Muzzaffarabad to Gurais. The tribesmen were then adopting guerilla warfare to infiltrate the Kashmir Valley.

On the night of 16 May, Brigadier Harbaksh Singh, leading his troops on foot, made a rapid advance through a very difficult terrain, including the crossing of the 11,000-ft. Nastachur Pass, and completely surprised the enemy who broke and withdrew in confusion and panic in all directions. Tithwal was thus captured on 23 May. The success of the operations was to a very great extent due to his personal leadership.

During the subsequent consolidation at Tithwal, when the enemy concentrated a stronger force and brought heavy fire to bear with numerous counter-attacks, Brigadier Harbaksh Singh visited every position placing troops on the ground and was frequently under enemy fire. To keep himself in touch with Divisional HQ he made frequent trips on foot unmindful of the danger of being ambushed as the line of communication was still exposed to enemy infiltration.

During these operations, Brigadier Harbaksh Singh showed gallantry and courage of a very high order and his personal appearance in forward posts, without regard for personal safety, considerably cheered the defenders.

After the Kashmir operations, he went on to serve as the Deputy Commandant of the Indian Military Academy, at the western command headquarters, director of infantry at the Army headquarters, and in 1957 attended a course at the Imperial Defence College (now Royal College of Defence Studies) in the United Kingdom. In January 1959, he became the first foreign officer to go on attachment with German Army's first division to be raised after their disbandment at the end of World War II.

He returned to India to take over as the General Officer Commanding (GOC) the 27 Infantry Division, and later as the GOC 5 Infantry Division. From July 1961 to October 1962, he was the Chief of Staff at the Western Command headquarters.

When the Chinese invaded NEFA and Ladakh, he was moved from Shimla to take over the command of IV Corps. He later he moved as the GOC XXXIII Corps.

GOC-in-C, Western Command, Lt. Gen. Harbaksh Singh with Brigade Commander, Vijey Kumar Ghai inspecting Kargil sector 1965

In 1964, he was promoted to Army Commander and took over as the General Officer Commanding-in-Chief (GOC-in-C) of the Western Command whose area of responsibility spanned from Ladakh to Punjab. He led the Western Command successfully against the Pakistan Army along the entire border in the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965.

Around May 12, 1965, Brigade Commander, Vijey Ghai in Kargil convened a conference at HQ. The agenda was not revealed but it started with him reading out the contents of Lt. Gen Harbaksh Singh GOC-in-C Western Command, DO (demi official note) to the forces. The Army Commander had reviewed recent skirmishes in Rann of Kutch and commented that the Pakis were continuing with their belligerent attitude and spoke about cultivating a more aggressive spirit in out troops. He also remarked pointedly “has the martial blood in the veins of the Indian Army soldiers dried up” or words to the similar effect.[19] The operations that followed including the Taking of Point 13620 and Black Rocks was a major boost for the Indian forces. Per the official account of the War,[20] this was the first counter-offensive undertaken by Indian troops in years. Its success had a good effect on the morale of the troops in J&K and the Army as a whole. Politically it bolstered the image of the country. The outstanding leadership of Lt Gen Harbaksh Singh had played a key role in boosting the morale of a defeated army turning it into a striking force within just three years of the Chinese encounter.

After serving as the General-Officer-Commanding-in-Chief of the Western Army Command from 1964 to 1969, the General retired in September 1969. Captain Amarinder Singh (later Chief Minister of Punjab) of Patiala served him as his ADC.