First Lt General Hanut Singh Memorial Lecture held in New Delhi

Lt General Hanut Singh Memorial Lecture was held at Kothari Auditorium, DRDO Bhawan in New Delhi, on May 9, 2016. The General passed away last year on April 11, 2015, and as a tribute this memorial lecture was held for the first time. It was organized by the Centre for Joint Warfare Studies. Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar was the chief guest on the occasion.

Lt General Hanut Singh popularly known as ‘the Doyen of Mechanised Warfare in India’ and ‘Soldier Saint’ was an archetypal Indian warrior in the classical, heroic mould of Indian history. He is better known for his heroics in epic tank battle at Basantar during 1971 Indo-Pak war during which almost 50 Pakistani tanks were destroyed as against loss of only 13 tanks of Poona Horse of Indian Army. The Pakistanis themselves called Poona Horse ‘Fakhr-e-Hind’ (the Pride of India), a compliment from the vanquished enemy.

Defence Minister during his inaugural address stated that military leaders of the stature of Lt General Hanut Singh are remembered for the leadership that they provide during important battles. He was a charismatic and clear thinking General who exhibited sound leadership qualities and out-of-the-box thinking which should be emulated by young soldiers and future generation of leaders.

Lt General A.K. Singh (Retd), Lt Governor, Andaman & Nicobar Islands, delivered the memorial lecture on ‘Leadership in the Future Networked Battlefield’. He highlighted the challenges for higher military leadership in 21st century and suggested ways to overcome them, suggesting a road map for future. Lt General Ajay Singh (Retd), former Governor of Assam, also delivered a lecture on ‘General Hanut Singh – the Doyen of Mechanised Warfare in India’. He highlighted his leadership attributes through battle accounts in Battle of Basantar during 1971 operations. A short film on life and times of Lt General Hanut Singh was also screened.