By NewsGram Staff Writer
New Delhi: The outcome of the 1965 India-Pakistan war has been shrouded in mystery due to conflicting claims and reports by the both sides. While India has maintained that the result was kind of a stalemate though India had the upper hand, Pakistan has for long claimed decisive victory for itself. Pakistan even celebrates September 6th as "Defense of Pakistan Day."
Now, for the first time, Indian Army is bringing out a new book on the war, that counter's the assertions of the Pakistan's claim to victory and tries to establish how India decisively won the war.
The book is a part of an ongoing project taken up by the Defense Ministry to re-write histories of various wars and major operations, so that they can be made simple and reader friendly, according to a report published in Times of India.
The new book, which has been commissioned by the Army's official think-tank "Centre for Land Warfare Studies," will be written by defense analyst Nitin Gokhale and will be titled "1965, Turning the Tide: How India Won the War".
The book says that India not only thwarted Pakistan's plans against India, it also inflicted great damage and losses on the Pakistan's military. The book supports these assertions by showing how India lost only 540 square km to Pakistan while it captured 1,920 square km of Pakistani territory; India lost 2,862 soldiers against Pakistan's 5,800; and India lost less than 100 tanks whereas Pakistan lost around 450 tanks, as per TOI report.
Meanwhile, Indian Air Force's new history debunks Pakistan's claim to victory in aerial combat during 1965 war.
The book gains significance in the backdrop of Narendra Modi government's decision to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the war as a great victory for India.