Master10
Defence & Security Module

Historic Military Operations of India

The Indian Armed Forces have conducted decisive operations for territorial integration, counter-insurgency, and international peacekeeping. In September 1948, Operation Polo successfully integrated the princely state of Hyderabad into the Indian Union. In December 1961, Operation Vijay liberated Goa, Daman, and Diu from 451 years of Portuguese colonial rule. On 13 April 1984, the Indian Army launched Operation Meghdoot, pre-emptively securing the Siachen Glacier in Ladakh, establishing the world's highest operational battlefield on the Saltoro Ridge. In November 1988, Operation Cactus deployed Indian paratroopers and naval vessels to thwart a mercenary coup against President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom in the Maldives. In 1999, Operation Vijay (Army) and Operation Safed Sagar (Air Force) successfully recaptured encroached heights in the Kargil sector of Jammu and Kashmir.

Key Concepts & Examination Highlights

  • Operation Polo (September 1948) was the military police action that integrated the princely state of Hyderabad into India.
  • Operation Vijay (December 1961) integrated Goa, Daman, and Diu into the Indian Union, ending Portuguese colonial administration.
  • Operation Meghdoot (13 April 1984) secured Indian control over the entire Siachen Glacier and Saltoro Ridge in northern Ladakh.
  • Operation Cactus (November 1988) was India's airborne intervention in the Maldives to defeat a mercenary-led coup attempt.
  • Operation Vijay and Operation Safed Sagar in May–July 1999 evicted Pakistani intrusions during the Kargil War.
  • Operation Vijay (May–July 1999) was the joint military operation launched by the Indian Army that successfully recaptured fortified peaks in Kargil, Dras, and Batalik.
  • Operation Trident (4–5 December 1971) was the devastating Indian Navy missile boat attack on the port of Karachi, celebrated annually as Indian Navy Day.
  • Operation Python (8–9 December 1971) was the follow-up naval strike on Karachi port, setting Pakistani oil storage tanks ablaze during the 1971 Liberation War.
  • Operation Blue Star (June 1984) was the military operation conducted inside the Golden Temple complex in Amritsar to flush out armed Sikh militants.
  • Operation Pawan (1987–1990) was the deployment of the Indian Peace Keeping Force (IPKF) in Sri Lanka pursuant to the Indo-Sri Lanka Accord.
  • Operation Ganga (2022) and Operation Kaveri (2023) were humanitarian evacuation missions executed by India to rescue citizens from war-torn Ukraine and conflict-hit Sudan respectively.
  • Operation Vijay (1961) was executed under the command of Major General K. P. Candeth, liberating Goa from over 450 years of Portuguese colonial rule with minimal casualties.
  • In the 1971 Indo-Pakistani War, Lieutenant General J. S. Aurora, General Officer Commanding-in-Chief of Eastern Command, accepted the instrument of surrender signed by Pakistani General A. A. K. Niazi in Dhaka on 16 December 1971.
  • Battle of Longewala (December 1971) was a historic defensive battle in the Thar desert of Rajasthan where a company of 23 Punjab under Major Kuldip Singh Chandpuri repulsed a massive Pakistani armored assault with IAF support.
  • Battle of Asal Uttar (September 1965) was one of the largest tank battles fought since World War II, where the Indian Army destroyed nearly 100 Pakistani Patton tanks in Punjab.
  • In Operation Meghdoot (1984), Captain Sanjay Kulkarni led the initial platoon landing by IAF helicopters on Bilafond La pass, pre-empting Pakistani military occupation of Siachen Glacier.
  • Operation Rajiv (June 1987) was an Indian Army assault led by Naib Subedar Bana Singh to capture the highest Pakistani post (Quaid Post) at 21,153 feet on Siachen Glacier, renamed Bana Top in his honor.
  • Operation Safed Sagar was the code name assigned to the Indian Air Force's combat air support and precision strike operations using laser-guided bombs during the 1999 Kargil conflict.
  • Operation Talwar was the large-scale operational deployment and naval blockade executed by the Indian Navy in the North Arabian Sea to deter Pakistan during the 1999 Kargil War.
  • Operation Black Tornado was the elite counter-terrorism operation conducted by the National Security Guard (NSG) commandos to eliminate terrorists at the Taj Mahal Palace Hotel and Oberoi Trident during the 26/11 Mumbai attacks.
  • The 2016 Surgical Strikes were conducted by the Indian Army Special Forces across the Line of Control (LoC) in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir, destroying multiple terrorist launch pads following the Uri terror attack.
  • The Balakot Air Strike (Operation Bandar) was conducted by Indian Air Force Mirage 2000 fighter jets on February 26, 2019, targeting Jaish-e-Mohammed terrorist training camps inside Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan.
  • Operation Devi Shakti was launched by the Indian Armed Forces in August 2021 to evacuate hundreds of Indian citizens and Afghan partners from Kabul following the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan.
  • Operation Dost was a search-and-rescue and disaster relief operation launched by India in February 2023, deploying the NDRF and Army Field Hospitals to earthquake-ravaged Turkey and Syria.
  • Operation Ajay was initiated by the Government of India in October 2023 to facilitate the safe repatriation of Indian nationals stranded in Israel during the Israel-Hamas conflict.
  • Operation Gulmarg was the code name of the covert Pakistani tribal invasion of Jammu and Kashmir launched in October 1947, repelled after Maharaja Hari Singh signed the Instrument of Accession.
  • The Battle of Badgam on November 3, 1947, was a decisive delaying action where Major Somnath Sharma and a company of 4 Kumaon prevented Pakistani raiders from capturing Srinagar airfield.
  • The Battle of Shalateng on November 7, 1947, saw Indian armored cars under Lieutenant Colonel L. P. Sen encircle and rout tribal raiders, securing the Kashmir Valley.
  • Operation Bison (November 1948) was an audacious Indian military assault that deployed Stuart light tanks at an unprecedented altitude of 11,500 feet across Zojila Pass to capture Dras and Kargil.
  • The Battle of Rezang La on November 18, 1962, saw Major Shaitan Singh and 'C' Company of 13 Kumaon make a legendary last stand against overwhelming Chinese forces in eastern Ladakh, earning him the Param Vir Chakra.
  • The Battle of Walong (October–November 1962) in Arunachal Pradesh was the only sector where the Indian Army launched counter-attacks against invading Chinese troops during the 1962 Sino-Indian War.
  • Operation Riddle (September 1965) was the large-scale Indian Army offensive across the international border toward Lahore and Sialkot to relieve Pakistani military pressure on the Chhamb-Jaurian sector.
  • The Battle of Dograi on September 21–22, 1965, saw 3 Jat under Lieutenant Colonel Desmond Hayde capture the fortified town of Dograi on the outskirts of Lahore along the Ichhogil Canal.
  • The Nathu La and Cho La clashes in September–October 1967 in Sikkim saw Indian Army troops under Major General Sagat Singh defeat Chinese military incursions, killing over 300 PLA soldiers.
  • Operation Jackpot (1971) was the clandestine operation organized by the Indian military and RAW to train, arm, and support the Mukti Bahini freedom fighters in East Pakistan.
  • The Battle of Hilli (November–December 1971) in East Pakistan was a fierce pitched battle where 20 Mountain Division broke through the fortified Pakistani 16 Division defenses.
  • The Tangail Airdrop on December 11, 1971, was the first combat parachute operation executed by the 2nd Parachute Battalion of the Indian Army, capturing Poongli Bridge and cutting off Pakistani retreat to Dhaka.
  • Operation Cactus Lily was the code name for the Indian Air Force's intensive combat air interdiction and ground-attack operations in East Pakistan during the 1971 Liberation War.
  • Operation Chutney (1961) was the naval patrol and surveillance phase preceding the ground assault of Operation Vijay for the liberation of Goa.
  • Operation Steeplechase (1971) was a joint military and police counter-insurgency operation conducted in West Bengal to contain Naxalite insurgent networks.
  • Operation Woodrose (1984) was a military sweep conducted across rural Punjab in the aftermath of Operation Blue Star to maintain public order and neutralize militant sleeper cells.
  • Operation Brasstacks (1986–1987) was the largest peacetime military mobilization exercise conducted by the Indian Armed Forces in Rajasthan near the Pakistan border under General K. Sundarji.
  • Operation Chequerboard (1987) was a high-altitude military deployment exercise in northeastern India responding to the Sumdorong Chu valley standoff with China in Arunachal Pradesh.
  • Operation Viraat and Operation Trishul (1988) were counter-insurgency sweep operations conducted by the Indian Peace Keeping Force (IPKF) against LTTE positions in northern Sri Lanka.
  • Operation Rakshak is the ongoing long-term counter-terrorism and counter-insurgency operational deployment of the Indian Army in Jammu and Kashmir initiated in 1990.
  • Operation Rhino is the continuous counter-insurgency operation launched by the Indian Army in Assam in September 1991 against the United Liberation Front of Asom (ULFA).
  • Operation Parakram (December 2001 – October 2002) was the massive 10-month-long military standoff and troop mobilization of the Indian Armed Forces along the India-Pakistan border following the Parliament terror attack.
  • Operation Sarp Vinash (April–May 2003) was a major Indian Army counter-terrorist offensive that eliminated heavily fortified militant hideouts in the Pir Panjal mountains of Poonch, Jammu and Kashmir.
  • Operation Sunrise (2019) was a coordinated bilateral joint military operation between the Indian Army and Myanmar military targeting insurgent camps along the Indo-Myanmar border.
  • Operation Snow Leopard (August 2020) was an Indian Army tactical operation that pre-emptively occupied strategic dominating heights along the Kailash Range on the southern bank of Pangong Tso in eastern Ladakh.
Curriculum & Reference Sources: Historical Section, Ministry of Defence (MoD), Indian Army Official History Portal

Sample Solved Questions & Concept Explanations

8 Verified Concept Questions
Q1.EASY

What was the name of the military operation launched by the Indian Army to liberate Goa from Portuguese colonial rule in December 1961?

Q2.EASY

What was the codename of the military action launched in September 1948 to integrate the princely state of Hyderabad into India?

Q3.EASY

Kargil Vijay Diwas is celebrated across India on which date to commemorate the victory in the 1999 Kargil War?

Q4.MEDIUM

What was the codename of the military operation launched by the Indian Army on 13 April 1984 to secure the Siachen Glacier?

Q5.MEDIUM

What was the codename of the Indian Air Force strike operation during the 1999 Kargil War providing precision laser bombing?

Q6.MEDIUM

What was the codename of the airborne rescue operation launched by the Indian Armed Forces in November 1988 to foil a mercenary coup in the Maldives?

Q7.MEDIUM

The 'Yudh Abhyas' annual joint military exercise is conducted between the armed forces of India and which country?

Q8.MEDIUM

The 'Malabar' multilateral naval combat exercise is conducted annually among the navies of the Quad nations: India, United States, Japan, and which other country?