Blog by Vanshi | Digital Diary

BATTLE OF PUNCH It was the 3rd of December 1971. Lt col Kl Rattan the Commanding Officer of 6 Sikh was scanning the reports coming in from his companies deployed along the border in Punch. The events were unfolding just as he had visualised and planned for .the enemy attack was imminent and the Battalion was fully prepared to face  it. 6 Sikh had moved into 93 Infantry Brigade sector and had taken over the task of defending Punch in may 1971. Puncwers of 1947 48 and 1965 also. Pakistan was bound to make yet another attempt to grab it so as to have an easy route of access to the Kashmir valley. The Indian observation posts at the Forward Defended Localities FDLS had been reporting large movement of Pakistani vehicles carrying troops and stored for the past few months. Their recce and surveillance parties had also been seen all along the line of control LoC obviously gathering intelligence on Indian troop deployment. In the past few days activities had become hectic and troops in large numbers could be seen moving behind Pakistani border posts called Raja and Rani on 30 November when the villagers across the LOC were seen vacating their homes in large numbers it became clear that the day of Reckoning wasn too far. On 1 December COL Rattan spoke to his men exhorting them to be vigilant and ready to live up to the best traditions of the Battalion. Loud cries of Bole so Nihal sat Sri Akal resounded and might have scared the enemy across the line of control. The confidence of VO and his men stemmed from the fact that tjri deployment was done after a lot of thought and their preparations were thorough. On taking over the location in May COL Rattan had carried out some re- adjustments in the deployment pattern in the battalion defended area. He was intimately familiar with the LOC in this area as he had operated here in the 1965 war and had participated in the capture of Haji Our. 6

BATTLE OF HILLI The HILLI town was located in the north western sector of East Pakistan, spread spread over on worth side of the border. It was of vital strategic importance and hence Pak commander expected his men to defend the complex at all cost. For the Indians it was the gateway to HILLI Gaibanda Bogra axis. Further it's occupation was considered necessary to isolate the Pakistani forces from rest of the East Pakistan.  On the Indian side the area was densely populated and build up. On the other side it was less populaypoand full of paddy and jute crops with a large number of groves and ponds. Preparing for war the Pakistani army destroyed the civilians to deny any shelter to Multi Bahini ( Bangladeshis who fought along with Indians) and Indian army the Pakistani forces were well prepared and pre stocked on these build up areas. The narrow lanes were used to place minefields in zig- zag direction and grenades. The pre _ conditions of the town provided the Pakistani forces an advantageous position. In fact they had turned the town into a strong fortress to thwart any attack.  It is notable that the battle of Hill had actually started on 22 November 1971, much before the commencement of War on 3 December. The battle was fought in two phases. The first phase lasted from 22 to 25 November and the second phase from 8 to 11 December 1971. In between some clashes followed. The battle is considered as one of the most pitched battles fought in the build up areas during India Pakistan war of 1971. Initially. The Indian Army avoided to go a Ross the border. But after the Pakistani army started shelling HILLI and Balurghat on 1 November GOC - in C Eastern command decided to reactivate and the task was a trusted to 8 Guards with 5 Garhwal as reserve. But later the objective was changed to capturing Northern HILLI including Naolara, Morapara and Basudeopur villages and not the whole HILLI complex realising that a single battalion may not be able to do it. Further the movement of the tanks over weak bridges and muddy terrain was an additional problem. 22 Movember was fixed for the commencement of the operation. The plan of the attack was prepared by the commander of 202 Mountain Brigade Brigadier Farhad Bhatty who had earlier shown promise in the a squadron of 63 cavalry in support.

BATTLE OF GARIBPUR  As a consequence ostani military clampdown in East Pakistan in March 1971, lakhs of Bengalis sought refuge in lndia many of them joined mukti bahini a guerrilla outfit raised to fight for the liberation of Bangla Desh. The Mukti Bahini fighters crossed borders to harass the Pak army, which in turn breached the indian borders in hot pursuit indian Army waarned Pakistanis for their s[poradic incursions onto the indian territory. Gradually, such incidents became more frequent and developed into encounters. one such incident  took place in the border area near village Garibpur. The village was located across an inmdian salient jutting into East Pakistan popularly called Boyra sailent. Poakistanis made it into a stronghold and used it to launch raids across the border. Garibpur was also strategically important as it dominated the highway [2 km away] leading to jessore from chaugacha. jessore was also the headquarters of the Pakistani army divsion, reponsible for the defence of this sector of East Pakistan. the domination over Garibpur area was vital for the armies of both india and Pakistan, and therefore a major battle took place here on 20- 21 Novemder 1971. An aerial encounter also ensued the very next day. To counter Pakistani incursions from boyra salient Brigadier JS Gharaya, Commander 42 Infantry Brigade, tasked Lt Col RK Singh commanding officer 14 Punjad [ Nabha Akal] to establish defences at garibpur. A squadron of 45 Cavalry with PT-76 tanks and aqn engineer platoon of 102 Engineer Regiment were also placed under his command. the task was assigned to 14 Punjab on 20 Novemder with orders to secure the objective by the first light on 21 November. Lt Col Singh immediately began to gather information about Pakistani dispositions in the area. it was found that the area was well looked after by a Pakistani brigade based at jessore hardly based at jessore hardly 20 Km from garibpur and that a battalion was already deployed in the vinity at chaugacha. further the enemy could strengthen the strounghold with at least one squadron of armour and two infantry battalions. Moreover, there was alsoi the possibility of an air attack. Pakistani troops were also ensured artillery support from a place called singha juli about 500 meters north of garibpur. Lt Col singh orderedone of his companies to march across the international border to garibpur without alerting the enemy. A river named kabadak which ran alongside the border had to be negotiated. the company manoeuvered hard and crossed over to the other side of the river despits shortage of boats. the whole battalion followed. the squadron of 45 cavalry also crossed over alsong with the companies of 14 Punjab. Meanwhile an advance patrol was sent under major A P vishwanathan to reconnoitre the area with a view to guide the batta;lion on its arrival in the area. But a Pakistani potrol was also making rounds in the same area. A clash erupted between the two patrols and pakistanis pulled back after a fierce fight. but the surprise was lost and the enemy alertede. In the circumstances, Lt Col company commanders to secure the objectives immediately. one company along with the squadron of 45 cavalry rushed forward to the jagannathur area. the other company secured a salient north of garibpur. the other troops secured the gap between the two companies. by early hours[ 0300 hours]

Championing the Blind  The American Foundation for the Blind AFB, despits being a relatively new organization had already made significant strides. A New Partnership  They established a unified Braille code set up a Braille printing press to increase book availability and assisted blind individuals in finding employment. By joining forces with the AFB, Helen and Anne would not only work on a cause close to helen's heart supporting the blind but also secure a steady income. In return the AFB gained prominent advocated to amplify its mission. Making a Big Impact  Helen's name proved to be a powerful asset. At their first fundraiser, she and Anne raised &21,000. Their efforts led President calvin coolidge to agree to become the AFB's honorary chairman Helen hosted fundraisers at har home spoke in churches and addressed town halls to educate the public about blindness. After three years of intense work it was time for a well deserved break. New Books and New Challenges  Helen sought to focus on writing and enlisted editor Nella Braddy Henney's help her first book my Religion was published in 1927, following by Midstream. My later life in 1929. However the latter did not achieve the same popularity as her earlier works as readers were more intersted yher childhood than her adult life. Amid these challenges Anne's deteriorating eyesight led to surgery to remove her right eye in 1929. Consequently polly accompanied Helen to washington DC. Where she successfully persuaded congress to allocate &75,00 for the printing of additional Braille books. This marked the first federal support for a blind related program in the US.  A New Ally and a Heartbreaking loss Helen's influential continued to grow and she forged a friendship with president Franklin D. Roosevelt. She advocated for the blind urging him and other legislators to take action. Her efforts contributed to the signing of the social security Act in 1935, which provided unemployment insurance retirement funds, and support for children and the disabled including the blind.

Voicing her views  Helen also wrote an article titled 'I Must speak for the Ladies'  Home journal. In the piece, she informed readers about an eye infection that mother could transmit to their newborn. The solution was straightforward _ special eye drops for the babiles.  Preventable Blindness The eye drops were inexpensive, but not all parents could afford receive the drops would become blind. Helen had once believed that blindness couldn't be prevented, but she now understood that this wasn't true. Learning that so much blindness could have been avoided made her angry. Helen realized the link between blindness and poverty and wanted to understand the challenge faced by those living in poverty. She visited their neighbourhoods and spoke with workers and immigrants to learn more about their lives. She was determined to find ways to help because she believed in the importance of improving others lives.  A New Influence  Throughout her life, Helen learned from many people and one of the most influential was john Macy, who edited her book. Helen came to admire john and when he married anne in 1905, she moved in with them. John a socialist, believed that wealth should be shared more equally among all people, not concentrated among the rich. Helen and Anne enjoyed john lively political discussions with friends, and Helen was inspired by his ideas. By 1909, she joined the socialist party, eager to learn and advocate for equality. During this happy period, Helen published two more book with John's help and often enjoyed bike rides with him loving the thrill of going fast.

The Breakthrough Moment While most children her age were learning in classrooms, Anne realised that helen wasn;s quite ready for that . Without a sufficient vocabulary, Helen couldn't grasp lessons effectively. The challenge was figuring out the best way to teach her the essential words. Although Helen's behaviour had improved she was still very energetic. Anne knew that traditional clasroom settings wouldn;t suit her teaching style. Instead she aimed for Helen to learn by exploring her environment.  learning Through Exploration The world became their classroom and their indoor time was filled with playful activies. One of their favourite games was a version of hide- and- seek, where Anne would hide specific objects for Helen to find. Outdoors they enjoyed long walks, where Helen learnt about nature and her surroundings. she felt crickets and their chirping legs, experienced the hatching of a baby chick and explored new plants as they grew from the soil. One of their cherished spots was keller's landing an old dock on the Tennessee River about two miles from ivy Green at keller's landing they played in the mud building dams digging lahes and creating mountains. while helen enjoyed these activities she didn't realise that Anne was subtly teaching her geography through play.  Learning to Read Anne was prepared to teach helen how to read, starting with familiarising her with the letters of the alphabet. she created paper cards with raised letters and placed them on top of objects they representsd like b-o-x'' on a box. Helen initially didn't grasp the concept so Anne hand on a new card and spelled out the leter ''a'' on Helen's other hand. Helen understood immediately and learnt the entire alphabet by the end of the day. Anne then introducced words. she had a book with raied letters and placed helen's fing er on the word ''c-a-t'' while spelling it out in Helen's other hand. Helen was excited to recognise the word. soon, they turned reading into a game, racing to find words from the book.

The Breakthrough Moment While most children her age were learning in classrooms, Anne realised that helen wasn;s quite ready for that . Without a sufficient vocabulary, Helen couldn't grasp lessons effectively. The challenge was figuring out the best way to teach her the essential words. Although Helen's behaviour had improved she was still very energetic. Anne knew that traditional clasroom settings wouldn;t suit her teaching style. Instead she aimed for Helen to learn by exploring her environment.  learning Through Exploration The world became their classroom and their indoor time was filled with playful activies. One of their favourite games was a version of hide- and- seek, where Anne would hide specific objects for Helen to find. Outdoors they enjoyed long walks, where Helen learnt about nature and her surroundings. she felt crickets and their chirping legs, experienced the hatching of a baby chick and explored new plants as they grew from the soil. One of their cherished spots was keller's landing an old dock on the Tennessee River about two miles from ivy Green at keller's landing they played in the mud building dams digging lahes and creating mountains. while helen enjoyed these activities she didn't realise that Anne was subtly teaching her geography through play.  Learning to Read Anne was prepared to teach helen how to read, starting with familiarising her with the letters of the alphabet. she created paper cards with raised letters and placed them on top of objects they representsd like b-o-x'' on a box. Helen initially didn't grasp the concept so Anne hand on a new card and spelled out the leter ''a'' on Helen's other hand. Helen understood immediately and learnt the entire alphabet by the end of the day. Anne then introducced words. she had a book with raied letters and placed helen's fing er on the word ''c-a-t'' while spelling it out in Helen's other hand. Helen was excited to recognise the word. soon, they turned reading into a game, racing to find words from the book.

There were schools for the blind and the deaf, but none were near the Keller's home in Alabame. With Helen being both blind and deaf, finding a suitable teacher seemed nearly impossible. One day, Helen mother discovered a book by Charles Discovered a book by Charles Dickens tlrled American notes. In it, Dickens described a remarkable women named Laura Bridgman 1829-89 who like Helen, was both blind and deaf had received an education. Laura Bridgman became the first person who was both blind and deaf to learn language. After contracting scarlet fever at the age of two laura lots her ability to see hear smell and most of her sense of taste.

Initially Helen depended entirely on her mother for support she would sit in kate's lap when her mother was seated and cling to her skirts when kate moved. As went about their day Helen explored her surroundings with her hands gradually learning to navigate the house and grounds at Ivy Green. Without sight or sound Helen relied on taste smell and touch to make sense of entitlement. She developed her own methods of communication shaking her head meant No while a nod singnified yes to indicate Go she would push and to say come she would pull Helen also used her knack for imitation to express herself. For instance, to request bread she would pretend to cut and butter it and to ask for ice cream she would mimic making it and shiver to show she was cold. 

Helen Keller's sudden loss of sight and hearing was a profound turning point in her young life. The vibrant world she once knew because silent and dark. Leaving her to navigate her surroundings through touch and intuition. Despits this her resilience and inner strength began to shine through. Her family's initial distress transformed into a determined effort to understand and support Helen 's new reality. They began to adapt their interactions creating a loving environmental where Helen could still experience the world in her own unique way. During this challenging period, helen's mother kate became increasingly attuned to her daughter's needs. The realisation that Helen could not longer see or hear marked the beginning of a profound journey for the keller family. This period of adaptation and the quest for effective communication methods laid the groundwork for Helen future achievements.