9 December 1971. 8.45 p.m. Torpedoed by a Pakistani submarine, the INS Khukri sank within minutes. Along with the ship, 178 sailors and 18 officers made the supreme sacrifice. Last seen calmly puffing on his cigarette, Captain Mahendra Nath Mulla, captain of the Khukri, chose to go down with his ship. This defining moment of the 1971 war between India and Pakistan is the basis of Major General Ian Cardozo's attempt to understand what happened that day and why. Major General Cardozo brings fresh insight into the hellish ordeal by including the heartfelt accounts of the survivors and of the members of their families. These accounts transform the stereotypical understanding of the incident; they also supplement it. We glimpse fear, trauma and death at first hand. In the annals of war writing, General Cardozo humanizes this cataclysmic event as never before.

On a cold night in December, 1971, INS Khukri was sunk by a Pakistani submarine off the coast of Gujarat. Was her sinking merely the case of an older frigate sparring with a new and very modern submarine? Or could the outcome have been changed by doing certain things differently? The matter has been debated at length, with occasional acrimony. Captain Mahendra Nath Mulla chose to go down with his ship. He chose to follow a stern naval tradition which was no longer mandatory - during the course of the Second World War that tradition had been amended. As his warship sank, each Captain was to decide for himself what he should do. Those then who knew Captain Mulla well, would not have been surprised at all at his decision to join his crew as they sank to their final resting places. This is a survivor's account of the events of that night. The author also describes various other important events, both civil and military, on our sub-continent in 1971. He comments on the misuse of religion by Pakistan's leaders and its negative effect on the state. There is a chapter devoted to the birth of Bangladesh and another one to Major General Ian Cardozo and 4/5 Gurkha Rifles.

An under-strength Gorkha battalion undertakes the Indian Army's first heliborne operation deep behind enemy lines, defeating a Pakistani force twenty times its strength. Fighters of the Indian Air force target the Government House in Dhaka in a daring air raid, forcing the Pakistani government in Dhaka to capitulate and surrender. Four battle casualties become close friends at the Artificial Limb Centre in Pune in the war's aftermath. In this collection of true stories, decorated war veteran Major General Ian Cardozo recounts what really happened during the 1971 Indo-Pak war, piecing together every story in vivid detail through interviews with survivors and their families. The book also seeks to commemorate the lives of those who were killed and wounded in this war, which took place fifty years ago. From the tragic tale of the INS Khukri and its courageous captain, who went down with his ship, to how a battalion of the Gorkhas launched what we accept as the last khukri attack in modern military history, these stories reveal what went on in the minds of those who led their men into battle-on land, at sea and in the air.

The year is 1971 Tension is brewing between India and Pakistan One secret could change the course of history . . . It's now up to her When a young college-going Kashmiri girl, Sehmat, gets to know her dying father's last wish, she can do little but surrender to his passion and patriotism and follow the path he has so painstakingly laid out. It is the beginning of her transformation from an ordinary girl into a deadly spy. She's then married off to the son of a well-connected Pakistani general, and her mission is to regularly pass information to the Indian intelligence. Something she does with extreme courage and bravado, till she stumbles on information that could destroy the naval might of her beloved country. Inspired from real events, Calling Sehmat . . . is an espionage thriller that brings to life the story of this unsung heroine of war.

Admiral S.M. Nanda started his career with the Royal Indian Navy. The post-Independence days posed a challenge for the nation and its defence forces and, as a young officer, he witnessed the fledgling navy grow from strength to strength. The crowning glory of his career, which spanned thirty-two years, came when he was appointed Chief of Naval Staff at a time when tensions with Pakistan were at their peak and the government was looking for a rm hand at the helm. He achieved distinction and honour for the remarkable role he played in the 1971 war for the liberation of Bangladesh, devising tactics to neutralize the Pakistan navy. The main target was the Karachi port, where the bulk of the Pakistan fleet was stationed. In his memoir, Admiral S.M. Nanda focuses on this signi cant event, providing a detailed account of how the Indian Navy carried out the operation. The Man Who Bombed Karachi is the inspiring story of how a childhood fascination for the sea led an outstanding officer to rise to the pinnacle of India's armed forces. It gives a glimpse into life in the Royal Indian Navy, with a dramatic rebellion by Indian sailors against their British superiors, and traces its evolution into an organization that is today a force to reckon with globally. Most of all, it is an insider's authentic account of the inventive naval strategies that led to one of India's biggest victories in war to date.

Jews who have made India their home have flourished without adverse discrimination. Of this, the Baghdadi Sephardic community is very small in number but has produced one of India's greatest contemporary soldiers, Lt Gen. Jack Jacob. This is his fascinating story. As a small boy, Jacob, who was from a business family, was sent to a residential public school in Darjeeling along with his two brothers. When the Second World War broke out, Jacob without informing his family joined the army in 1941 to fight against the Nazis! After Independence, Gen. Jacob became a gunnery instructor for some time and subsequently was trained in an advanced Artillery and Missile course at Fort Sill in the US. A quick learner, he commanded infantry and artillery brigades, headed the artillery school, and finally the Eastern Army. Rubbing shoulders with some of the stalwarts who strode the Indian political and military arena in those times, Gen. Jacob sometimes fell foul of his bosses and twice came close to resigning. But he stuck on and the pinnacle of his career came in 1971, when he planned and oversaw operations leading to the fall of Dacca and obtained an unconditional public surrender, the only one in history, of Gen. Niazi and his army of 93,000. Written lucidly, this autobiography comes to life as a historical document recapitulating some of the most important events of the 1960s to the 90s - from the defeat of the Naxalites in West Bengal, to the problems of Nagaland and Sikkim and the politics of Goa and Punjab. This is not only the story of the life of one great soldier, but provides glimpses of some of the most influential and colourful personalities who wrote the history of those tumultuous times.