DECEMBER IN DACCA: The Indian Armed Forces and the 1971 Bangladesh Liberation War Hardcover – 12 April 2022

The 1971 war has been dissected by many writers in various ways. December in Dacca is however different in that while mentioning the "dry history" that is necessary , there is a continuous thread that runs through the book - namely that this was a "just" war and in fighting the battles , the karmic forces of good over evil ruled . While such hyperbole may raise eyebrows , there is enough material and evidence in the book to prove that this was actually in the "unsaid" and at the back of the minds of all the Armed Forces personnel who were involved in the war.The focus is naturally on the Eastern Front and rightly so as that is where the "just" part of the war came into its own - releasing a nation suffering under a tyrrany and in the process creating a new nation .Nair has the advantage of being connected to some of the key personnel whose stories figure in these pages . These stories set against the dry historical background form some of the finest depictions of Indian Armed Forces at work and doing their job as quickly and efficiently as possible. In the process he also brings some new insights ; the Sea KIing ASW helicopters not being allowed to give chase to the PNS Hangor is a totally new insight for this reader . His personal recollections as a schoolboy during the period, also adds the personal touch to the professional view of the overall course of the war .To write more about it here would be injustice; the best is to buy this simply SUPERB book.

Not purchased because so many books read on 1971.But this book looks interesting after reading summary in my net library

Half a century is a significant portion of one’s journey in life, and offers a good opportunity to look back.The time scale, perhaps permitting a slight element of detachment,in the exercise of re-examining some of the primary self motivational factors that have propelled that voyage ! Especially if the point of focus of that re-examination centres around an event which played a crucial role in determining life/career goals in the mind of an impressionable school boy!I suspect that a lot of Indians of my age group were actually influenced/ motivated by that same event.The author of this book certainly was.The event in focus is the 1971 war of liberation of Bangladesh.Reading “December in Dacca”, stirred some memories with a surprising level of detail,despite the passage of time.Surprising,because one generally is hard pressed to remember any kind of details about events which occurred much nearer in the past!So obviously our perception of that war left a lasting impression in our individual, and it appears the shared public memory of people who were of a certain age at the timeOne(out of the multiple)perspectives the author has chosen to approach that significant event in our post independence history,is that of a school boy in December 1971!Of course being slightly older and coming from an armed forces family he was perhaps a slightly better informed school boy than a lot of others like me.However,given the technology of the time,the images that this re-counting brings to mind,like the gun camera footage(a sequence of 3 rows) from the IAF Gnats of the Boyra PAF Sabre interception,splashed across the newspaper front pages on 24 th November, are likely to be well remembered by all.Other images like the Refugee relief 5np postage surcharge stamp revive memories which are sufficiently detailed to concur with his observation that this kind of token personal sacrifice had widespread support from all citizens at the time.In fact this reinforces his assertion that the public perception was that we were engaged in a morally “just war” and on the side of the victims of a brutal military regime.In conjunction with the other diplomatic and geopolitical insights due to his extensive subsequent research into the subject,(again motivated no doubt by that schoolboy desire to dig deeper!)…this also highlights an interesting “contrast” in the kind of “morally correct nationalism” we felt at the time, to the current version of it based on a re-assertion of “cultural identity”.At a personal level,this book has helped to clearly enunciate for me the origin of my aspiration to become a fighter pilot, and the career path I actually ended up following as a result of my determination to achieve that goal!This book of course also contains an interesting military “war diary” narrative of the significant operations of the war like the missile boat attack on Karachi harbour(and many other amazing “stories”) recounted in a lucid yet technically accurate manner.The accounts are brefet of false bravado,yet retain the of charm of a youthful re-telling of adventures…primarily because of the average age of the Indian pilots ,sailors or soldiers who were at the sharp edge of the execution of these operations…and to whom the author had an almost familial (and therefore)continued access over the years,given his own military family background.Those with an interest in reading military history (especially the Second World War) would find another cool point of intersection with the author,in that the template of measuring up or assessment of military conduct follows the same lexicon used in a lot of these classics like Douglas Bader’s biography “ Reach for the sky”!However,for those like me who already have an extensive collection of books on the subject, the most significant value addition is in the revealing international diplomatic and geopolitical insights that the author offers.This is especially significant in light of recent global(and domestic) events, and their possible repercussions.It offers an overarching perspective which is definitely worth considering in our policy making processes and public consultations and discussions.Based on lessons that need to be learned,one of the elements which is in tune with my own observations is that it is very important to bring perpetrators of crimes against humanity to justice.It is not merely for the sake of obtaining justice for the victims…This calling to account needs to be an integral part of the cessation of any war(just or unjust)in order to minimise the prospects of more wars in the future.Because if not held accountable, there is a tendency to downplay the malfeasance, and rehabilitate the perpetrators to sow the seeds for more global harm and mayhem in their subsequent avatars(like some functionaries in the ISI did in later years).

I haven’t read many books on Bangladesh Liberation War and I am not even familiar with many, but this book for sure is one of the finest, factual, and informative book about the 1971 war. Despite this incident having the involvement of mainly 3 countries only, the author’s claim of it not being anything less than World War II seems quite right when I read the book.Starting from the dispute between East and West Pakistan over language barriers, Hindu-Muslim fights, and the thought of being the ruler led to Bangladesh Liberation War in 1971, now India is economically fragile and still a developing nation after the 1965 Indo-Pak war, is not ready to get involved between any kind of wars right now, but when more than 10 million refugees came to India, she has no choice but to get involved.The barbaric killings of civilians, Hindu-Muslim riots, destruction of the vast area of land to avoid agriculture, and displacement of millions of people, this all is known to all world, especially big forums, that claim to intervene and protect people from wars and revolutions like this. But how then, did this huge war, which is so far isn’t considered huge happened.This book is a real insight into old India, how she helped refugees when she was herself going through economic hardships, it also brings us face to face with the harsh reality of how the world works, and how there are always a few loyal people in any department. The author himself was a school child when all this was happening and he added his perspective after each chapter on all the incidents happening around him. Movies and shows, make us know our history but books let us live them for a while so that we can observe and analyze.This book is interesting, it gave me new knowledge & perspective and dusted my old ones. Narration is indulging and I am not getting biased about any particular GOI, but it sure does feel like that old, sensitive, empathetic heart of India is been replaced by a new, practical, and acrimonious heart of India.