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Himalayan Blunder: The Angry Truth About India's Most Crushing Military Disaster (2000)

by J.P. Dalvi(Favorite Author)

4.24 of 5 Votes: 4

ISBN

8185019665 (ISBN13: 9788185019666)

languge

English

genre

History & Biography

review 1: This is an excellent book for various reasons. Firstly, Indian war books are rare. This is not a genre that is appreciated in common discussions. There are no star war analysts or writers. And those who pretend to be so on mass television, tend to be ill informed or come with set agendas.Secondly, this book talks about a history, which is impossible to find anywhere else. School books, contemporary history texts and op-eds almost always skip the ignominy of China war. There could be many reasons - the narrative does not fit in with what the government ordained history is. Or in some cases, influential commentators in this field are directly related to the chief villains of this war!Thirdly, this book busts a key myth about India's hallowed politicians post 1947. For a whol... moree generation, which has been Ram Guha-ed into reading post modern history (one should still read him, for he still covers amazing breadth as well as reasonable depth), there is no alternative source to vet the competence of India's political class from 1947 to 1962. This book explains why China war was not an event where it went wrong (popular version in whatever literature is available on the subject). The book explains how the China War was not lost in 1962, but steadily through the 15 years preceding it.Fourthly, the book makes it clear that India's loss against China was not military but political. Foreign policy decisions aimed at grandstanding and projecting one individual as world savior, key ministerial appointments based on friendships and old equations and a complete breakdown of decision making over many years backed by zero knowledge of armed conflicts stand out as key failures.The book is written by an author perhaps most qualified to write one on the subject, given his personal role in the war. The writing becomes cliched once in a while and gets repetitive, but then the author isn't a professional writer to start off. It is a must read for anyone interested in understanding how the country has shaped up post-independence. It is also a must read for those who love to throw titles like "country's best leader" based on no critical analysis of personalities.
review 2: Brig. John Dalvi was perhaps best positioned to write about the Indo-China War of 1962, an event in which the Indian Army came out second best, not because of their fault but largely because of the sloth of the men who governed India those days."Himalayan Blunder" is the story of a tragedy which could well have been averted. A story of how egos got in the way of common sense and made the poor ill-equipped Indian soldier fight an uneven battle against vastly better armed and prepared Chinese troops. Yet there were moments of glory too for the Indian Army but it got a battering after having come out of Second World War in '45 with flying colours.Brig. Dalvi was taken prisoner by the Chinese and speaks at length about his days of captivity apart from tracing the events that led to the war. If you want to know who was responsible for one of the most shameful periods in Indian history, do read this book.Fifty years have gone by since this short but fierce war, but the real truth has never come out on many aspects of the preparations for the War and its actual conduct. Brig Dalvi's book is an eye-witness account of some of the important battles of this war and tries to answer some of the questions that are in every Indian's mind. less

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