Page 5 - ch 20

Kargil Conflict - 1999 Module - V

Major Wars Post
Kargil war the Indian troops fired over 250, 000 shells, bombs and rockets, i.e.
Independence
5,000 shells, mortar bombs and rockets daily.
20.2.2 Role of Indian Air Force

The IAF launched an operation called ‘Operation Safed Sagar’ to support the ground
troops during the war. Such role was limited due to the weather condition, high altitude,
limited bomb loads and less number of airstrips. As the terrain in the Kargil area is at
Note
16,000 to 18,000 feet above sea level, it needs well trained personal and special
aircrafts.
On May 27, the MiG-27 flown by Flt Lt Nachiketa, while attacking a target in Batalik
sector, developed an engine trouble and he had to bailout. Sqn Ldr Ajay Ahuja, in a
MiG-2l, went out of the way to locate the downed pilot and in the process was hit by
a Pakistani surface- to-air missile (SAM).
He ejected safely but his body bearing gun wounds was returned subsequently by
Pakistan. The state-of-the-art Mirage-2000s along with Mig -29 were used for
electronic warfare, reconnaissance and ground attack carrying free-fall bombs. It also
fired the laser-guided bomb with deadly effects causing considerable destruction to
Pakistani bunkers on the ridges at Tiger Hill and Muntho Dhalo. In the Mirage attack
on MunthoDhalo, 180 Pakistani troops were killed.

Intext Questions 20.3

1. When did the Indian Army detect intrusions in Kargil?
2. What was the artillery used by the Indian Army against Pakistani Posts?

3. What were the aircrafts used by the Indian Air Force during the Kargil War ?

20.2.3 Role of Indian Navy
The Indian Navy blocked the Pakistani ports near Karachi to cut off the supply routes.
The Navy was clear that a reply to the Pakistani misadventure had to be two-pronged.
It was decided by Naval Head Quarters that all efforts must be made to deter Pakistan
from escalating the conflict into a full scale. From May 20 onwards the Indian Navy
was on full alert for launch of the naval retaliatory offensive. Thus, Naval and Coast
Guard aircraft were put on a continuous surveillance and the units readied. Rapid
reaction missile boats and ships from the fleet were deployed in the North Arabian
Sea for carrying out missile firing, anti-submarine and electronic warfare.
Sea Harrier aircrafts can take off vertically and do not need a runway. In ‘Operation
Talwar’, the ‘Eastern Fleet’ joined the ‘Western Naval Fleet’ and blocked the Arabian
sea routes of Pakistan. Later, the Prime Minister of Pakistan Nawaz Sharif disclosed
that the country was left with just six days of fuel to sustain itself if a full-fledged war
had broken out. This also means that our strategy of blocking the port of Karachi
worked.

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