War Veteran passes away

MHOW (M.P.): War veteran Prithvi Raj, who headed the 12th Infantry division under the command of which the Pokhran nuclear test was conducted in 1974, died here on Tuesday due to old age-related problems.

The 87-year-old retired Major-General, who commanded an infantry brigade in the Shankargarh sector during the 1971 India-Pakistan war, was cremated with full military honours here in the presence of Army officers and jawans.

The illustrious officer is survived by son Lt Gen Deepak Raj, commandant of Army War College. — PTI
War Veteran passes away

Corps of Signals Centenary Celebrations at MHOW

Corps of Signals Centenary celebrations were held at Mhow on 30 Sep and 01 Oct 2010. It was a double bonhomie because 01 Oct also happens to be the anniversary of MCTE, which completed 64 years of its existence on that day. A good number of former Commandants, Faculty Commanders and Instructors graced the occasion.

The first event was on 30 Sep 2010 at the famous Hema Ranges where an Air Show was held by the Army Aero Nodal Centre, Mhow. The AANC team put up a thrilling Air Show using five Microlight aircraft's and two Power Hang Gliders. The sky-diving team led by Lt Col Satyendra Verma, through their free fall and para-drops, made the event spectacular, showcasing their skills and daredevilry.

By 10 am, everybody was seated at the Garrison ground where the Corps of Signals Kalaripayattu and Taekwondo teams, Silent Drill Contingent and DR Display Team exhibited their expertise. Lt Col Satyendra Verma and Hav Parkhe sky-dived from a helicopter flying at 5000 ft. The landing which was perfect and at the centre of the Garrison ground received a big applause from the vast gathering. Lt Gen P Mohapatra, AVSM, ADC, SO-in-C and Senior Col Comdt was the Chief host.

Since the entire who’s who of Mhow were invited to witness the show, the Garrison ground was packed to the capacity. The spectators went home happy with their spirits heightened.

In the evening a social was organized at Milan. This venue for most of the guests was a sweet reminder of the yesteryears, when it used to be a plunge bath, till as late as Oct 1996. The old-timers still recall visiting the pool during Holi celebrations.

On 01 Oct, the MCTE raising day, an exhibition volleyball match was organized at the Airfield grounds. The match was played between 1 STC and Corps of Signals Team. Though the Corps team scored victory by a 3.0 margin, the sportsman spirit of the Signals was the ultimate winner.

After the match, everyone assembled at the College HQ Complex. The officers and ladies were ushered in to the Iyappa Hall (which serves as an auditorium) for the briefing and presentations. Lt Gen VK Sharma, Comdt MCTE and Col Comdt welcomed the guests to MCTE and thanked his predecessors for having built the College, brick by brick, to the level where it stands today.

Maj Gen GS Bisht, Dy Comdt MCTE welcoming the veterans to the College, gave out a brief presentation on the history of the Alma mater and highlighted the major milestones in its journey of 64 years. His presentation was followed by a short film on the College.

It was indeed a blending of the past with the present at the MCTE. Since all officers and their wives had been a part of the Alma mater at some time or the other. Some of them had done three tenures as instructors and as many as five courses

The visitors were then taken around the College so that they could correlate the past to the present through the class rooms, offices, labs, living accommodation. The old-timers were really lost in the web of time but it was an instant waking up to see the changes, so lively and so real

A Central Barakhana for all the guests was organized at the Football Grounds. The Corps Band was in attendance. In the evening a social was held in the HQ Officers’ Mess. Senior serving and retired officers and selected high ranking civilian dignitaries of Mhow and Indore were also invited. The night of 1st Oct, at the highest point of the ridge, where

the Lone Tree still stands strong, was charged with lot of bonhomie, fervor and esprit de corps.

This brought down the curtain upon the Mhow chapter of the Centenary celebrations. The presence of three Cols Comdt, former MCTE Comdts, Maj Gen (Retd) BS Paintal, Maj Gen (Retd) Shyamal Ghosh, Lt Gen (Retd) SK Dovedy, AVSM, Lt Gen (Retd) MK Ghosh, PVSM, AVSM, Lt Gen (Retd) Sudhir Kumar, PVSM, Lt Gen (Retd) RL Magotra, PVSM, VSM, Lt Gen (Retd) MG Datar, VSM, Lt Gen (Retd) SP Sree Kumar, PVSM, AVSM and Lt Gen (Retd) YS Panwar, AVSM,VSM and former SO-in-C Lt Gen (Retd) PGokarn, PVSM, AVSM and other senior officers made the celebrations really a once-in-a century event.

After the centenary year proceedings were launched at the Vigyan Bhawan by the Hon’ble President of India, on 15 Feb 2010, Mhow get-together was a major central function. The next venue is 2 STC, Goa, which hosts the Centenary events on 15 and 16 Nov 2010. Delhi would see some special events in Jan and Feb 2011, before all roads lead to and merge at 1 STC, Jabalpur to make it the grand finale and centenary REUNION from 13 to 15 Feb 2011.
Slideshow: click here to view 41 photos

Corps of Signals History: Clarifications and Comments solicited

Dear Veterans,
I am presently working on chapter 12 of Volume III of the Corps History dealing with Regimental Institutions, Sports and Adventure. This is the last chapter and I am looking forward to the end of the grind!
While researching the history of the HQ Mess, I have across some interesting facts.
The 2nd Meeting of the Indian Signal Corps Committee was held on 15 May 1947. It was chaired by Brig HD Beadon and attended by Col BD Kapur, Majors AC Iyappa, Bhattacharia, SS Chaudhary, Mohd Suleman, MBK Nair, Lall Husain, Prem Singh and GH Simoes (Secretary). Minute No 9 reads as under:
Minute No 9 OFFICERS CENTRAL MESS
In view of the possibility that the ISC School may have to move out of HOLKAR State, it was agreed to defer the move of the Officers Central Mess from JUBBULPORE to MHOW till the final location of the Indian Signal Corps School was decided
The 3rd Meeting of the Indian Signals Committee (1st Meeting of newly reconstituted Committee) was on 1-2 April 1948. It was chaired by Brig CHI Akehurst and attended by Brigs BD Kapur and BS Bhagat; Cols RN Batra and Apar Singh; Lt Cols AC Iyappa, SN Bhatia and ID Verma; Majs RS Tiwana, JV Pinto and KK Tewari (Secy) and Sub Maj V Govindaswami. Minute 11 reads as under:
Minute 11 FORMATION OF “IND SIGS HQ MESS”
(a) It was unanimously agreed that the Officers Mess at IND SIGS School should be the “IND SIGS HQ MESS”. In view of the fact that no facilities for a proper mess existed at MHOW at present, it was decided that IND SIGS Centre Officers Mess JUBBULPORE will continue to be regarded as ‘HQ’ Mess for the time being.
(b) It was agreed that ‘financing’ of proposed HQ Mess should be commenced immediately. Half a day’s basic pay (on new pay code) annually was agreed as the basic subscription towards this fund from all officers of the Corps. It was proposed that Sigs Dte (Sigs Adm) be asked to open a separate account for this fund and devise means of collection of same from officers through their units annually.
A year later, the above decision was modified, and the 2nd Meeting of the Indian Signals Committee held on 24-26 May 1949 decided that with immediate effect the mess of the School of Signals as opposed to that of the STC will be known as the “Indian Signals Headquarters Mess”.
Was there a likelihood of the Holkar not permitting the ISC School to be set up at Indore? Of course, at that time the princely states had still not joined the Union. Can any veteran throw some light on this?
It also appears that the HQ Mess functioned at Jubbulpore from Apr 1948 to May 1949 ie about year. Is this correct?
I would be grateful for comments
Maj Gen VK Singh (Retd)

History of MHOW Garrison
On the 3rd June, 1818, the great grandson of Balaji Vishvanath surrendered to Sir John Malcolm at Mhow near Indore. On the 28th December, 1817, the army of Holkar attacked the English at Madhidpur and were completely defeated. The remains of Holkar's army were attacked by General Browne and destroyed on the 10th January, 1818, at Rampur. In the meantime Tulsibai had been murdered by her own troops, and on the 6th January, the young Holkar had made his peace with the English by the treaty of Mandasor and become their subordinate ally. He gave up his lands south of the Narbada and abandoned all his claims over Rajputana, while the English undertook to maintain a sufficient field force to protect his state. This force still exists and is the Mhow garrison.
A history of the Maratha people

Olive Green: Brief history of MCTE, Mhow

Brief history of MCTE, Mhow by Ambreen Zaidi, Bhopal, February 05, 2006 Archives Hindustan Times
MILITARY HEADQUARTERS of War (MHOW) Cantonment was founded by Sir John Malcolm as a sequel to the Treaty of Mandsaur signed by the British Government and the then Holkar king.

Three premier training institutions of the Indian Army viz. the College of Combat, Infantry School and Military College of Telecommunication Engineering (MCTE) are located in the cantonment.

The spirit of the cantonment is irrepressible, showing a quaint defiance to the inexorable march of time. During and even after World War I, the Corps of Signals was officered by individuals from the Royal Signals trained in the United Kingdom.

From 1933-40, Indian commissioned officers were trained at the Signal Training Centre (STC) Jabalpur and Army Signal School, Poona. Besides this, specialist training was imparted at the Telecommunications School, Agra and Communication Security School (Cipher) at Mhow.

A Signals Officers Training School, as part of the STC (British) Mhow, trained cadets commissioned into the Royal Signals as well as the commissioned officers of the Indian Signal Corps during 1940-46. All these institutions, except the Army Signal School, Poona, were amalgamated at Mhow on October 1, 1946 to form the Indian Signal Corps School. After independence, it was renamed the School of Signals on June 25, 1948.

The school was organised to train Young Officers (No 1 Squadron), Tech Training (No 2 Squadron) and Cipher Training (No 3 Squadron). However, in 1947 the squadrons were renamed Coys. By early 1949, the establishment was revised again and the school redesignated the School of Signals.

In 1952, the Army Signal School was also moved from Poona to Mhow and retained its separate identity till July 1, 1953 when it was absorbed as part of the School of Signals. The wings were redesignated as Tactical, Technical, Cipher and All Arms Wings. Consequent to national emergency in 1962, a requirement was felt to give pre-commission Signal training to cadets from the Indian Military School (now the Indian Military Academy).

Thus, an additional ‘cadets’ wing came into existence in February 1963 as an affiliate to the Tactical Wing. It was later called YOs Wing. On October 1, 1967, the School was redesignated as the Military College of Telecommunication Engineering, and Tactical and Technical Wings became Faculty of Combat Communications Engineering (FCC) and Faculty of Communication Engineering (FCE) respectively.

Graduation from School to College in 1967 also saw addition of Technical Maintenance and Training Aid Wing and the Equipment and QM Wing.

With the advent of computers, the Faculty of Computer Technology and Systems was added in February 1971. EMC/EMI Cell was established in 1980 as part of the prestigious project of the Department of Electronics.

This cell was then expanded and on June 19, 1986 it became the Army EMC Agency, a separate establishment that is now the Army Centre for Electromagnetics (ACE) wef January 1, 1997. Establishment of the Cadets Training Wing on July 10, 2000 heralded the dawn of another era in the history of Mhow Cantonment.

Did you know?
SEVERAL CENTURIES ago, an innkeeper put a small slotted box on each table with a sign ‘To Insure Promptness’, and hence, the word ‘tip’ was coined from the initial letters of this sign. However, the practice of tipping is almost universal though in certain exclusive establishments like the Officer’s Mess it is discouraged. The general rule is that a tip equivalent to 10 per cent of the bill is paid to the waiter. One should be careful not to tip too lavishly as it arouses scorn from others and appears unduly ostentatious. On the other hand, too small an amount brings resentment.
Snooker
The game of Snooker was conceived in Jabalpur. Origins of the game of Snooker are generally regarded as being in the latter half of the 19th century. Billiards had been a popular activity amongst British army officers stationed in India who stole the idea from the Indian game Carrom, and variations on the more traditional billiard games were devised. One variation was to add coloured balls in addition to the reds and black which were used for pyramid pool and life pool. This gave birth to the game of Snooker. Although snooker's origin is not recorded explicitly, it is generally held that a Colonel Sir Neville Chamberlain (no relation to the World War II Prime Minister) conceived the game in the British Army Officer's Mess in Jubbulpore, India, in 1875. Was this Mess subsequently designated as Officers Central Mess?
OLIVE GREEN | Brief history of MCTE, Mhow
Diary of 2/4th Battalion the border regiment, 1914-19

Musings of Missing the Magic

With a feeling of euphoria and in an expansive mood we came out of the Air Conditioned Noida Golf Course Pub, after an enjoyable evening of dinner drinks and entered a different world: a full moon in the sky, the emerald green, greens and the freeways bathed pale, a pleasant mildly cool breeze caressing us and lingered for a while, we had a meet to welcome Maliks, common friends, on a short visit from USA, still talking of past with feelings dipped in nostalgia.

Earlier with the tables cleared, the Kulfies and Gulab-jamuns, slowly savoured, we had lingered at the table and later we had lingered at the car park, hands extended, with the feeling of bonhomie, but reluctant to bid goodbye, unconsciously, trying to hold on to the magic of the evening as long as possible.

Combine of the moon and the cool breeze, unusual for this time in the world of Noida, brought back the magical memories of the legendary Malwa nights: the vast landscape lit by the full moon in the sky, stretching far towards the Bercaha lake; back in time in Mhow and in the company of my late wife. Also evocative of similar night of Dawars at Tezpur, the airfield area, spread as far as eyes could see, suffused with the pale-white moon-light, the tall reed like grass swaying in the mild breeze with the white plumes shining silver reflected by the full moon, high in the sky on a winter night was an ethereal light. The sight, the peace and quiet of those special nights provided, though a sheer magic, no compensation for all the pain of separation from the family some 2000 Km away in Dehradun.

I came home, parked the car, changed and came down to the park below. It was now past twelve in the night, the moon, and now high in the sky, was still bright, the breeze also blowing and the park suffused with the same evocative pale-white moon-light, alas, the magic that I had come down in search of was missing and so was the company and the companion.
Brig Lakshman Singh (Retd)

The fear of the Audit

My late eldest brother was an Audit Officer in CAG's Test Audit about which you read in the last para of the article The fear of audit by Brig A N Suryanarayanan (Retd) click here

Even today, the Army fears the annual visit by auditors.!!
CDA once objected to purchase of “snacks” from the Annual Training Grant by College of Combat. The CDA also pointed out carelessness in spelling “snacks” and “snakes”.
In reply the College of Combat said - “ It was not snacks as pointed out by the auditor but correctly spelled as snakes which were purchased for training of commandos”. Audit objection was waived off.
Brig Chander Kamboj (Retd)

Chandigarh Calling- Col Ranjit Singh Tiwana 91st B'day

Dear Signallers,
Col Ranjit Singh Tiwana, a veteran Signaller has turned 91. To celebrate the same he was the host at the Monthly Mercury Club Tea at Chandigarh on 01 Oct 09. The Mercury Club Chandigarh tea is hosted in turn by all the Signals veterans on the first Thursday of every month.

The Veterans arranged a birthday cake. Maj Gen MS Dhillon presented a bouquet to Col Tiwana being the next senior and Brig KS Gill as also Col JS Kandha spoke about the life and services of Col RS Tiwana.

Col RS Tiwana was commissioned in the Corps of Signals in 1942. He underwent the Staff College Course at Quetta, now in Pakistan, was instructor in the Infantry School at Mhow, commanded 5 Inf Div Sig Regt and was DCSO Jammu and Kashmir during 1965 War.

Later Col RS Tiwana joined the BSF and served for 8 years in this Organisation. His son late Col Amarjit Singh was also in the Corps of Signals. Col Ranjit Singh Tiwana lives in Chandigarh and with the grace of God he is in good health. He walks 2 1/2 km every day and still drives a Contessa, but only during daylight hours.

We wish him a long and healthy life.

We were very happy to have Maj Gen Manmohan Singh (Retd) who is heading The Army Welfare Education Society and Mrs Manmohan Singh as also Col KK Khanna (Retd) from New Delhi and NOIDA respectively, on this occasion.
Lt Gen Harbhajan Singh, PVSM (Retd)

Maj Gen Manmohan Singh was the the 40th Colonel Commandant of the Corps of Signals. An alumnus of National Defence Academy, the General Officer is a graduate of Defence Service Staff College, Wellington. He has also attended National Defence College in New Delhi and Higher Command Course at College of Combat, Mhow. He holds a Masters Degree in Business Administration and is a Fellow of the Institute of Electronics and Telecommunication Engineers.

Maj Gen Manmohan Singh had been a General Staff Officer (operations) in an Infantry Division and at a Command Headquarters. He was also been a Deputy Commander of an infantry brigade in Western Sector. He commanded a Mountain Division Signal Regiment in high altitude in Sikkim and was instrumental in planning and restoration of communication during the flood which struck Mangan district in August 1983.

He was appointed Additional Director General Personnel Services at Army Headquarters. Prior to this, he was Chief Signal Officer of Southern Command. He was Operational Logistics analyst at Army Training Command. Maj Gen Manmohan Singh is a recipient of Ati Vhishisht Seva Medal. Now after retirement he heads the AWES- Army welfare Education Society. He is a go- getter and surely we would be seeing the Vision of AWES- ‘Quality Education at Affordable Cost’ to all ESM children- materialise under his able stewardship. He was my company commander when I did my Young Officers (YO- 60) course at MHOW in 1972 and I for sure know he tolerates no nonsense in achieving the aims and goals of AWES.

Shankar Lakshman: The Hockey Wizard of Maratha Light Infantry

Dev Kumar Vasudevan, narrates the story of Hony Captain Shankar Lakshman, a fauji who became a hockey legend and brought great laurels to India both in the Olympics and Asian games
Shankar Lakshman was born on July 7, 1933 in Mhow. He belonged to the Shekhawat community of Rajasthan. He played hockey at a time when the goalkeeper had only pads as a protective gear. He was a member of the Olympic gold medal winning hockey team in the 1956 Melbourne Olympics. The other medals he won include the 1958 Asian Games gold medal (Tokyo), 1960 Olympics silver medal (Rome), 1964 Olympics gold medal (Tokyo) and the 1966 Asian Game Gold medal (Bangkok). He was awarded the Arjuna Award in 1965 and the Padmashri in 1967. He was dropped from the Indian hockey team to the Mexico Olympics of 1968 and the decline of Indian hockey also began with that tournament.

His opponents called him the Rock of Gibraltar. According to the manager of the silver medal winning Pakistani hockey team of the ‘64 Tokyo Olympics, Shankar Lakshman was the sole obstacle between the Pakistani team and the gold medal. Lakshman was the first goalkeeper captain in the world. Just take a look at his stunning record. In three Olympic finals against Pakistan he conceded just one goal and in three Asian Games finals he conceded two goals. That makes it six matches and three goals. Charles Cornelius, the former Indian hockey player had once said of him “Lakshman was among the game’s greatest. He was an epitome of courage and a role-model for others of his ilk. Unfazed by any situation, he had the ability to defuse any crisis. His team-mates were at a loss to know how his pads grew broader and broader as the contest wore on.” Referring to his performance in the 1964 Hockey finals against Pakistan in Tokyo the Australian Hockey magazine Hockey Circle had said “...for Lakshman, the ball was the size of a football. It was his afternoon of glory and fame.” Lakshman had joined the Indian Army as a bandsman in 1947 at the tender age of 14 and served in the Maratha Light Infantry’s 5th Battalion. He had retired from the Army as a Subedar Major in 1978 and was awarded the rank of honorary captain. As luck would have it one of the battalions posted in Mhow at the time of his death was the 26th battalion of the Maratha Light Infantry- his funeral was conducted with full military honours by this battalion. It was an emotional experience not only for the townspeople of Mhow but also for the Army. The Maratha Light Infantry could bid goodbye to one of its most illustrious sons. Garrison Ground Mhow has been converted into a mini stadium by the Infantry School and has been named after him. The Infantry School Mhow has also instituted the Shankar Lakshman Hockey Championship Trophy. An apt honour for a son of Mhow. This trophy was won for the first time by the 26th Maratha Light Infantry. That is something which would have made him proud if he had been alive.
Dev Kumar Vasudevan is a freelance writer based at Mhow
Remembering Hony Captain Shankar Lakshman

Silent Rally Mhow War Memorial 27 Apr 2008

A disciplined mixed lot of Officers, JCOs and Men. Gen MG Datar briefing the press. Wishing our mission all the very best.

Brig V Ramanan (Retd)