Almost five years later, the three services have still not fully understood that joint/theatre commands are not a discussion point; they are the prime minister's diktat on a military reform measure that is in line with what armed forces around the world have implemented, points out Ajai Shukla.
One hundred years on, World War I resonates across Belgium in countless monuments and cemeteries along with relics of long-abandoned bunkers and trenches that dot the landscape. These relics are a constant reminder of what happened on Flanders Fields 100 years ago when life was about trenches, the protection of a bunker, a muddy battlefield and destroyed villages.
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The memorial is the first-of-its-kind built by India in France after the country's Independence. The announcement to construct the memorial was made by External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj during her last visit to Paris in June 2018.
The sacrifice made by thousands of Indian soldiers fighting for the British army during the World War I has been recognised as part of a ceremony in London.
British Defence Secretary M Fallon on Thursday laid a wreath at the war memorial at India Gate to commemorate India's contribution during World War I.
'Many sepoys fought with distinction, winning some of the first Victoria Crosses to be awarded to Indians; and indeed, as in any army fighting under such inhumane conditions -- standing in the freezing sludge, with shrapnel tearing through bodies and being subjected to gas attacks -- some buckled under pressure.'
The subcontinental man has a better record of fighting than Arabs, and what the Indian soldier has always needed is good leadership, says Aakar Patel.
'The Indian Army served with honour and distinction in France and Flanders, East Africa, Gallipoli, Aden, Egypt, Mesopotamia, Palestine, Transcaspia, Persia and even China.' 'The sacrifice of India's soldiers was consigned to the dustbin of history in the post-colonial world.'
'Over one million people served in various battlefronts during World War I. And yet, even today, we know so very little about them.' 'It is absolutely essential to acknowledge this part of India's colonial history,' Santanu Das tells Vaihayasi Pande Daniel/Rediff.com