The book written on the clandestine operation successfully executed by the Indian Navy during the 1971 war with Pakistan was discussed at lenght today during a panel discussion in the afternoon session of Military Literature Festival.The book co-authored by MNR Samant and Sandeep Unnithan is the first known documentation of Indian Navy's covert Operation X, undertaken during the Bangladesh Liberation War. Captain MNR Samant was the Staff Officer, G1 of the Naval Commando Operations-X unit. He was decorated with India's second highest gallantry award, Maha Vir Chakra. Unfortunately he passed away just few months before the publication of his book on March-20-2019.Co-Author Sandeep, Admiral Sunil Lanba and Commodore Srikant P kesnur took part in the discussion.During discussion the co-author and panelists said that Pakistan unleashed genocide upon the people living in Eastern part of Pakistan forcing millions of them to enter into India for refuge. The refugees offered themselves to be trained for under-water gurrilla operation to form Bangladesh. Their training was done at Plassey on the banks of river Bhagirathi.
The discussion began with the explaination about operation X, which entailed blocking supplies to damage the war waging potential of Pakistan in the earstwhile East Pakistan. Captain Mihir Roy and Commander MNR Samant led the operation. The book reveals about the clandestine strategy adopted by the Indian Navy to blow away the Pakistani ships.Sandeep Unnithan said he painstakingly gather information about the entire incident which was a herculean task after 5 decades of the incident.The co-author and panelists shared many interesting and hair raising facts and anecdotes about the war and conditions in which the young Bangladeshi freedom fighters were trained. The book reveals that the young trained army damaged the ships of Pakistan with explosives which were used under water. The Panelists informed that the grippingly written account of not very widely documented episode of Indo-Pak war in 1971 arrests the attention of the readers. They stated that while reading the book they come to know about an altogether new world as they were mostly unware of successful operation executed by the Indian Navy.