G. D. Bakshi

GD Bakshi in a program at Bhopal

Major General Gagandeep Bakshi SM, VSM or G. D. Bakshi (born 1950 in Jabalpur) is a retired Indian army officer.^[1] He is from the Jammu and Kashmir Rifles. A veteran of many skirmishes on the Line of Control and of counter-terrorist operations in Jammu and Kashmir and Punjab, he was awarded the Vishisht Seva Medal for commanding a battalion in operations in Kargil.^[2] Later, Major General G.D Bakshi commanded a brigade in counter-terror operations in the rugged mountains of Kishtwar, for which he was awarded the Sena Medal for distinguished service. He subsequently commanded the Romeo Force during intensive counter-terrorist operations in the Rajouri-Poonch districts of Jammu and Kashmir and succeeded in pacifying the area.^[3] He has served two tenures at the Directorate General of Military Operations and was the first BGS (IW) at HQ Northern Command (India), where he dealt with Information Warfare and Psychological Operations.^[4][5]

Military career

Bakshi is a combat veteran of many skirmishes on the LC and Counter-Terrorist operations in J&K and Punjab. He commanded his battalion in active operations in Kargil and was awarded the Vishist Seva Medal. Later he commanded a brigade in Counter-Terrorist operations in the very rugged mountains of Kishtwar and was awarded the Sena Medal for his distinguished services. He subsequently commanded the reputed Romeo Force during intensive Counter-Terrorist operations in the Rajouri-Punch Districts of J&K in the wake of Operation sarp vinash and succeeded in pacifying the area. He has served two tenures at the highly prestigious Directorate General of Military Operations (during Op Pawan and Op Vijay) and was the first BGS (IW) at HQ Northern Command where he dealt with Information Warfare and Psychological Operations.

Early life and education

Bakshi was born in a Punjabi family and educated at the St. Aloysius Senior Secondary School in Jabalpur, Madhya Pradesh.His eldest brother Capt Raman Bakshi was killed in action during the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965. In acknowledgment of Raman's sacrifice, the route to Katanga in Jabalpur where Bakshi's bungalow is located, was named Raman Bakshi Marg. Bakshi graduated from school in 1966. He joined the National Defence Academy in June 1967 (a year and a half after his elder brother was martyred) Though selected as an Airforce Cadet, Bakshi switched to Army to serve in the same unit, where his father and brother had served the Indian Army. Soon after graduating from the Indian Military Academy on 14 November 1971, Bakshis batch was called into action at the outbreak of hostilities in the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971 and suffered heavy casualties.He led a company of Sikh troops very successfully for Anti terror and border sealing ops in the Punjab from 1985-1987.He commanded his battalion in heavy skirmishes in Kargil in an area of major intrusion in Dalunang 1990-91. A Regiment of 105 mm guns, a battery of 120 mm mortars, 5 platoons of 81 mm mortars,a 75/24 mm gun in direct firing role along with 4 ZU-23 anti- aircraft guns, 4 Anti - tank guns and Grad P Rocket tubes were extensively used in major fire assaults to teach the Pakistanis a lesson for their constant unprovoked firing in this area. . 29 Baluch and 3 NLI of Paki army suffered some 40 killed and over 140 wounded in the skirmishes spread over nearly two years.GHQ Islamabad had to request New Delhi for a cease fire. Bakshi's unit won 25 awards( including a VRC posthumous) and he himself was given the VSM. An indication of the severity of the fighting is given by the fact that his unit suffered 6 boys martyred and 21 wounded in these heavy skirmishes in Kargil. He later commanded a Brigade in CT ops in Kishtwar and won the SM for his leadership. he prevented Ethnic cleansing of Dogra Hindus from kishtwar by vigorous operations to eliminate terrorist groups that were slaughtering the minorities.Finally he commanded a Division in intensive CT ops ( Romeo Force)in Rajuri and Punch in the wake of Op Sarp Vinash and succeeded in pacifying the area.^[6]

After retirement

He is a prolific writer on matters military and non-military and has published 36 books and over 200 papers in many prestigious research journals. His articles have also been published in various National Newspapers. He taught at the Indian Military Academy Dehradun and the Prestigious Defence Services Staff College at Wellington for three years each. He taught at the National Defense College at New Delhi for two years and retired from this prestigious assignment in June 2008. He holds a master's degree in Defence Science and an M Phil in Strategic Studies from the University of Madras. He recently completed his Ph.d from the same University on" Limited Wars in South Asia".

He is an Associate member of the IDSA and a distinguished fellow of the Centre for Air Power Studies. His books include, “Afghanistan-the First Fault line War”, “War in the 21st Century”, “The Indian Art Of War”, “The Paradox of Pakistan” , “The Rise of Indian Military Power: Evolution of an Indian Strategic Culture “and “Limited Wars in South Asia.”^[7] Bose an Indian Samurai: A military assessment of Netaji and The INA"Knowledge world New Delhi, Guardians of the Gate: A Military History of the Mohiyal Fighting Brahmins, Knowledge World, New Delhi.

Public Speaking

Bakshi is a regular on Prime Time in debates on Indian Television and mostly speaks on tackling cross-border terrorism with Pakistan. He advocates a strong, proactive approach to raise costs for Pakistan for its sponsorship of terror. He speaks regularly at prestigious institutions like Army War college, College of Defense Management, Defense Services Staff College, Indian police Academy, Lal Bahadur Shastri Academy IAS. He has spoken at IIT Delhi, Kanpur and Chennai. He gave a speech on Aug 11, 2016 at IIT Chennai on the subject "National Security and History of Indian Army", as part of Extra Mural Lecture Series. Bakshi mentioned peace with Pakistan would come at a cost to India and advised eternal vigilance would be needed on India's part to maintain peace. He is a trustee of the Netaji Subash Bose INA trust and speaks extensively on the need to correct the distortions in the recording of our history of the freedom struggle wherein the role of Netaji and the INA has been totally wiped out by a set of court historians. He regularly speaks at schools and colleges all over India to instil the values of patriotism and nationalism. He was favoured to assume the appointment of Governor of Jammu & Kashmir in July 2018.

Selected publications

• Bakshi, G. D. (2015). China's Military Power: A Net Assessment. Centre for Land Warfare Studies. ISBN 9789383649396. OCLC 903345328.
• Bakshi, G. D. (2013). Kishtwar Cauldron: The Struggle against the ISI's Ethnic Cleansing. Pentagon Press. ISBN 9788182747364. OCLC 864543669.
• Bakshi, G. D. (2010). Limited Wars in South Asia: Need for an Indian Doctrine. Centre for Land Warfare Studies. ISBN 9789380502458. OCLC 678542539.
• Bakshi, G. D. (2010). The Rise of Indian Military Power: Evolution of an Indian Strategic Culture. KW Publishers. ISBN 9788187966524. OCLC 473662691.
• Bakshi, G. D. (1999). Afghanistan, the First Fault-Line War. Lancer Publishers. ISBN 1897829493. OCLC 41213913.
• Bakshi, G. D. (1990). Mahabharata, a Military Analysis. Lancer International. ISBN 8170620945. OCLC 39223360.
• Bakshi, G. D. (2016). Bose: The Indian Samurai - Netaji and the Ina a Military Assessment. ISBN 9789383649921.^[8]
• Bakshi, G. D. (2017). Guardians of the Gate: A Military History of the Mohiyal Fighting Brahmins. Knowledge World Publishers, New Delhi.

References

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