A TRIBUTE TO FM MANEKSHAW.

by Maj RS Rajput
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In the context of “Field Marshal Manekshaw Memorial Lecture” I wish to share my own memories of this illustrious son of Bharat as follows.

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MY RECOLLECTIONS OF

FIELD MARSHAL MANEKSHAW

A PERSONAL TRIBUTE

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I came to know Field Marshal Manekshaw when I was doing the staff course at Defence Services Staff College at Wellington, Nilgiri Hills, from October 1961 till August 1962, Gen Manekshaw was the Commandant.

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He spoke for a few minutes separately to all the new entrants at the start of the course in order to get to know each one of us individually. Thereafter, I found it astonishing that he could easily recall our names. We were 80 in that batch. That was his prime quality as a successful leader of men to address us by name.

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I saw him many times later when he would personally sum up the result of our field exercises (TEsWT) and offer the DS solution. His logical presentation of all the factors, eloquent summing up and conclusion impressed us all.

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During all the encounters with him one sentence came out clearly as if straight from his heart. That was, "Gentlemen, I want you to be MENTALLY & PHYSICALLY robust!"

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I learnt something else, too. Whenever one of us started his opinion at the ‘summing up’ by saying, “I don’t think…,” the general would instantly snap, cutting his sentence, and say, “Only the dead don’t think. You should think positively and say, “I think that such and such course of action is not practical.”

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I saw his point. A number of times I checked myself abruptly, remembering his advice. We saw how he changed our personality and outlook on life by being positive.

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His words are still engraved in my heart and often in civilian life thereafter, particularly on facing problems on arrival in the United Kingdom, it was that positive attitude that gave me courage to face the adversity and "Press on Regardless", the motto of my Meiktila Company at the National Defence Academy (NDA).

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He was from the Gurkhas who march at double the pace of normal infantry. That must have contributed to his quick wit and ability to decide and act forthwith without hesitation. The Gurkhas are among the elite fighting troops in the world and so was their Commanding Officer among the rest.

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Observing him at work and inspections and noticing how he won everyone’s respect and admiration I could compare him to another great military commander, Field Marshal Montgomery of El Alamein, who defeated the formidable German army under Field Marshal Rommel in North Africa in 1942. In gaining historic victories, Montgomery in North Africa and Manekshaw in East Pakistan, as well as in physical appearance, body build and mannerism the two men had remarkable similarities.

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We know what a "role model" is. These are the people, whether our national heroes or successful men in other fields of life, who inspire us through the difficult times in life. That way I always carried the invisible "stamp" of FM Manekshaw in my own psyche, and felt good about it.

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FM Manekshaw was born in the Sikhs’ holy city of Amritsar and since childhood there was a kind of spiritual attachment with the Sikhs. It was in Amritsar that the Jallianwala Bagh massacre took place in 1919 and the Governor at the time, Michael O'Dwyer, was assassinated. Again in the same city the Indian Army attacked the holy shrine of Harimandir Sahib in 1984 as a result of which Prime Minister Indira Gandhi was assassinated. Like his place of birth Manekshaw, too, was an extraordinary man.

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On the day he passed away I felt sad that a great general and leader was no more but also not to see the President of India, the Prime Minister and the Defence Minister go out to attend his funeral simply because he was a man of conviction and courage and an upright (unbending) general. http://wadias.in/site/arzan/blog/indian-government-screws-up-field-marshal-manekshaws-passing-away-rites/. He was one of those great generals who can only think of resounding victories in war, never a cease-fire.

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Britain is fighting a fierce war in Afghanistan and nearly every day RAF planes bring bodies of dead soldiers home. These are ceremoniously paraded through the streets of Wootton Bassett, a small town near an RAF airfield. Civilians in their thousands line up, five to six deep, to pay homage to the fallen and watch the bands accompanying the cortege. This is the way soldiers are given a hero’s farewell. The Sunday Telegraph yesterday (January 16, 2011) has published a supplement entitled, “50 Great Heroes. The brave, the gallant, and the extraordinary”. In the United States the respect shown to the fallen soldiers by the President is legendary.

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In my land of birth, on the other hand, I saw the man, who had asked me to be “mentally and physically robust” and defeated the enemy decisively, pass away quietly, leaving behind a grateful nation.

Maj RS Rajput

RSingh305@aol.com