Kargil order of battle explained
The Kargil War order of battle (KWORBAT), is a deposition and systematic combatant structure of the Indian Army troops and the unified Pakistan Armed Forces combat commands, active in the Kargil region in 1999, during the Kargil War. The Indian Army orbat is based on the publications provided by the Indian military authors, news media and official sources.
India
Indian Army infantry battalions were often transferred between brigade commands during the war, so sometimes appear under multiple brigades.
Indian Army
Northern Command
Divisional Brigades
- 8 Mountain Artillery Brigade
- 56 Mountain Brigade (Matayan)
- 192 Mountain Brigade
Additional brigades
3rd Infantry Division
- 2 Engineer Regiment
- 3 Artillery Brigade
- 70 Infantry Brigade
- 102 (Independent) Infantry Brigade
Kargil Theatre Artillery
These units took part in the war serving under various formations:[1]
- 4 Field Regiment (now 4 Medium Regiment (Self Propelled))
- 108 Medium Regiment (now 108 Field Regiment)
- 114 Medium Regiment
- 139 Medium Regiment
- 141 Field Regiment (now 141 Medium Regiment)
- 153 Medium Regiment (now 153 Medium Regiment (Self Propelled))
- 158 Medium Regiment (Self Propelled)
- 197 Field Regiment (now 197 Medium Regiment)
- 212 Rocket Regiment
- 831 Light regiment
- 244 Heavy Mortar Regiment (now 244 Field Regiment)
- 253 Medium Regiment
- 255 Field Regiment (now 255 Medium Regiment)
- 286 Medium Regiment (now 286 Field Regiment)
- 305 Medium Regiment (now 305 Field Regiment)
- 307 Medium Regiment
- 315 Field Regiment
- 1861 Light Regiment
- 1889 Light Regiment (now 1889 Missile Regiment)
Other battalions[2]
- 5th Battalion, Special Frontier Force
- 663 Reconnaissance & Observation Squadron
- 668 Reconnaissance & Observation Squadron
- 13th Battalion, Punjab Regiment
- 12th Battalion, The Grenadiers
- 22nd Battalion, The Grenadiers
- 7th Battalion, Jat Regiment
- 14th Battalion, Sikh Light Infantry
- 9th Battalion, Rashtriya Rifles
- 14th Battalion, Rashtriya Rifles
- 17th Battalion, Rashtriya Rifles
- 11th Battalion, Sikh Regiment
- 3rd Battalion, Jammu and Kashmir Rifles
- 16th Battalion, Dogra Regiment
- 5th Battalion, Rajput Regiment
- 9th Battalion, Mahar Regiment
- 21st Battalion, Parachute Regiment (Special Forces)
Indian Air Force
Apart from the involvement of the Indian Army, the Indian Air Force (IAF) also participated in the Kargil War as part of Operation Safed Sagar.
Pakistan
Initially, the Kargil order of battle was planned by the Directorate-General for Military Operations (DGMO), Brig. Gen. Nadeem Ahmed. However, after the IAF strike and Indian advancement in the region, the Pakistan Air Force and the Navy deployed and issued orders to their combat forces. Their missions were to conduct surveillance and air patrolling; no other combat units of PAF and Navy participated in the combat. The inter-services order of battle is mentioned in the table. According to the Pakistan news channels reports and military declassified information, the Kargil infiltration was comprehensively planned by the joint officers at the Joint staff Headquarters, a joint office secretariat which then-served under Gen. Pervez Musharraf.
From the start of the conflict, there were numerous inter-services meetings coordinated by the chairman joint chiefs, to Prime minister Nawaz Sharif. The controversy still surrounds in the military science circle of the Pakistan armed forces, with chief of naval staff and chief of air staff including key theatre commanders of army combatant corps, bringing up the accusations that the Kargil front was launched without their knowledge or confidence.
Pakistan Army
- 5th Battalion, Northern Light Infantry Regiment
- 6th Battalion, Northern Light Infantry Regiment
- 12th Battalion, Northern Light Infantry Regiment[3]
- 13th Battalion, Northern Light Infantry Regiment
- 24th Battalion, Sindh Regiment[4]
- 27th Battalion, Sindh Regiment
Pakistan Air Force
- Note: No PAF F-16s took active participation in the conflict. All PAF missions were to conduct combat air patrols in the area.
Pakistan Navy
- Note: No Navy units took active participation. The Navy was on high-alert but strictly ordered by Admiral Bokhari not to escalate the crises into sea. Although, Navy had its own significance in the Kargil theatre, but no crucial operations and efforts were applied or undertaken by Navy to support the army. According to the chief of naval staff, General Pervez Musharraf, as chairman joint chiefs, had failed to take navy into confidence prior to the start of the conflict.
- Pakistan Navy Commander Karachi[7]
- Pakistan Naval Air Arm
- The Pakistan Navy, in a defensive mood, directed all its units to keep clear of Indian naval ships. As the exercise shifted closer to the Makaran Coast, Pakistan moved all its major combatants out of Karachi. The Navy remained on high-alert, although orders were not to escalate the crises to sea. The Navy launched surveillance operations; Karachi port remained on high-alert.[8]
References
27 Sind
Sources
Notes and References
- Web site: Anjan Mukherjee in Evolution of Indian Artillery and its Impact on India's Comprehensive Military Power, chapter III. 2022-02-28.
- This list is compiled from newspaper and casualty reports.
- [Nishan i Haider]
- In the FCNA region from October 1998 onwards
- Web site: Lieven Dewitte. PAF F-16s deployed in Skardu. July 3, 1999. General F-16 News. 7 February 2013. 28 January 2013. https://web.archive.org/web/20130128084721/http://www.f-16.net/news_article602.html. live.
- Web site: Kargil Conflict and Pakistan Air Force. 28 January 2009 . PAF operations. 7 February 2013. 8 July 2011. https://web.archive.org/web/20110708044739/http://kaiser-aeronaut.blogspot.com/2009/01/kargil-conflict-and-pakistan-air-force.html. live.
- Web site: Navy in Kargil war. GLobal war. 7 February 2013. 17 August 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20160817042758/http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/world/war/kargil-99.htm. live.
- Book: Hiranandani, G.M.. Transition to guardianship : the Indian navy 1991–2000. 2009. Published by Principal Director of Administration, Integrated Headquarters, Ministry of Defence (Navy) [in association with] Lancer Publishers. New Delhi. 978-1-935501-26-8. 28 November 2020. 17 October 2022. https://web.archive.org/web/20221017172739/https://books.google.com/books?id=q9VEoqA24BIC&q=Pakistan+Navy+in+kargil&pg=PA67. live.
