In the event of a war, the 54th Infantry Division was to be part of
I Corps, then the only Strike Corps of the Indian Army. The division was commanded by
Major General WAG Pinto, the 3rd General Officer Commanding (GOC). The division moved from its peacetime location in Secunderabad to its operational location in the
Punjab and was ready by mid-September 1971.
ORBAT The ORBAT of the division during the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971 was: •
Divisional Reserves • 45 AD Regiment • 6th battalion,
Madras Regiment (6 Madras) • 9 Engineer Regiment (
Lt Col B T Pandit) •
47 Infantry Brigade (
Brigadier A P Bhardwaj) • 16th battalion,
Madras Regiment (
Lt Col V P Ghai) • 16th battalion,
Dogra Regiment (16 Dogra) • 3rd battalion,
The Grenadiers (
Lt Col V P Airy) •
74 Infantry Brigade (
Brigadier Ujaggar Singh) • 8th battalion,
The Grenadiers (8 Granadiers) • 6th battalion,
Kumaon Regiment (6 Kumaon) • 9th battalion,
Maratha Light Infantry (9 MLI) •
91 Infantry Brigade (
Brigadier A K Handoo) • 3rd battalion,
Garhwal Rifles (3 Garh Rif) • 3rd battalion,
1st Gorkha Rifles (The Malaun Regiment) (3/1 GR) •
16 (Independent) Armoured Brigade (
Brigadier A S Vaidya ) •
4th Horse (Hodson's Horse) (
Lt Col R M Vohra) •
16th Light Cavalry (
Lt Col Mahindra Singh) •
17 Horse (Poona Horse) (
Lt Col Hanut Singh) •
75 Medium Regiment (
Lt Col K N Thadani) • 18th battalion,
Rajputana Rifles (18 Raj Rif) • 90 (Independent) Reconnaissance Squadron (AMX-13) •
54 Artillery Brigade (
Brigadier Avtar Singh) •
69 Field Regiment • 161 Field Regiment •
162 Field Regiment (
Lt Col A K Bhandari) •
44 Light Regiment • 70 Medium Regiment •
41 (Independent) Artillery Brigade The tasks allotted to the Division were: • Carry out offensive operations based upon Galar with the ultimate aim of capturing Zafarwal and Dhamtal. • While doing so, capture Darman, Bari, Laisar Kalan, Supwal Ditch and Badwal. Be prepared to capture Deoli and Mirzapur, if required. This meant that the Division was to operate between the Degh Nadi and the Karir Nadi. The Pakistani forces opposite the Division consisted of elements of the
8th Infantry Division. The 24 Infantry Brigade with four battalions (
11 Baloch which held the Supwal ditch,
40 Punjab which was deployed east of the Karir Nadi,
24 Punjab which was defending the Basantar Nala), a brigade in Zafarwal area and
Reconnaissance elements of
21 Baloch. Apart from these infantry units, Pakistani armour consisted of the 8 Armoured Brigade which had
13th Lancers, 31 Cavalry and 27 Cavalry under it, equipped with
M47 Patton and
M48 Patton tanks. The Division crossed the border as planned at 2000 hrs on 6 December and captured the border outposts at Chamnakhurd, Danadout, Galar Tanda, Chak Jangu, Dhandhar, Mukhwal and Buru Chakby 0230 hrs 7 December.
Battle of Basantar The Battle of Basantar was among the most vital battles in the war. It was one of the greatest tank battles fought by the
Indian Army. The Division had the 47 Infantry Brigade, 91 Infantry Brigade and the 74 Infantry Brigade,
Poona Horse, one squadron of
Hodson's Horse and
75 Medium Regiment. The date for the Basantar crossing was fixed for night 14/15 December, but was postponed by 24 hours by Gen Pinto. The Battle of Basantar was a decisive Indian victory. The 47 Infantry Brigade was christened
Basantar Brigade after the war. In what is an Indian Army record, the 54th Infantry Division won as many as 196 gallantry medals in just 14 days of fierce fighting. These include 2
Param Vir Chakras, 9
Mahavir Chakras and 4
Vir Chakra. The GOC,
Major General WAG Pinto was awarded the
Param Vishisht Seva Medal. The Division remained in Pakistan until the
Simla Agreement, after which it moved back to
Secunderabad in March 1973. A war trophy - a disabled Pakistani
M47 Patton Tank was gifted by the Division to the Government of Andhra Pradesh and had it installed on the
Tank Bund Road, Hyderabad. ==Awards and honours==