Kargil : From Surprise to Victory [Dec 01, 2011] Malik, General V. P.

In February 1999, Pakistani Army personnel, disguised as jihadi militants, infiltrated into mountainous Kargil and occupied key vantage points. Their intrusion triggered a limited war between the worlds newest nuclear states. It was a bitter battle, and one that threw up important lessons for Indias defence preparedness, as also its responses to conflicts such as this. This incisive book by General V.P. Malik, former Chief of the Army Staff, analyses the reasoning behind the Pakistani Armys moves and tactics and reviews crucial issues such as the extent of intelligence and surveillance failure on the Indian side and the measures necessary to redress these failings. Away from questions of strategy and tactics, however, Kargil is also a reminder of the unalloyed heroism that was on display during those grim weeks, heroism that become a benchmark for valour.