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Authors: Rachna Bisht Rawat
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Singh Salaria was born on 29 November 1935 in a village called Janwal, near Shakargarh, now in Pakistan. The second of five children, he was a favourite of his grandmother, who would tie a black thread around his waist to keep the evil eye away from him. By that time, Adolf Hitler had already emerged as a dark force and war clouds were looming over the world.
Gurbachan’s father Munshi Ram was in the Armoured Corps of the British Indian Army and would move from one Army cantonment to another, coming home only on annual or casual leave. When he did come home it was celebration time in the family. His favourite food would be cooked, the house would sparkle and friends and family drop in to listen to his awe-inspiring tales of faraway places where soldiers performed great acts of bravery. Little Gurbachan and his siblings would listen to their father in rapt attention as he sat smoking his hookah. Quite possibly this is how Gurbachan was inspired to be courageous.
Gurbachan’s mother Dhan Devi had never been to school and was completely occupied with her growing children. She was, however, very particular that her children’s education did not suffer despite living in a village. Gurbachan would go to school regularly, but was always more occupied with games and outdoor activities rather than studying. He was a good kabaddi player, and continued to be good at sports even after he cleared the entrance to King George’s Royal Military College (KGRMC), Bangalore, at 11 years of age. Though he was initially rejected in the physical exam because his chest was found to be an inch less than the stipulated measurements, he was given a month to try again. He took the challenge head on, drinking one litre of goat’s milk every day and exercising passionately.
When he went back for his medical, he had managed to increase his chest by two-and-a-half inches and was immediately admitted. He joined the college in August 1946 as a cadet. In 1947, he was transferred to KGRMC Jullundur, which was closer to his village.
When he was in his second year, Gurbachan and a friend were once bullied and insulted by another cadet. Gurbachan’s self-respect took a blow but he challenged the bully to a boxing match the next day. He boxed with such fury that the bully was knocked out and had to apologize. The operation in Congo was very reminiscent of this incident; where Gurbachan took on a much bigger and better equipped enemy fighting force just because he wanted to teach them a lesson in war ethics.
Gurbachan went on to the National Defence Academy and then the Indian Military Academy. He joined 2/3 Gorkha Rifles in July 1954 where because of his cropped hair cut and upturned moustache he was nicknamed Khan Saheb by his commanding officer. In March 1960, he received orders transferring him to 3/1 Gorkha Rifles. And that was where General R. P. Singh, who was then the battalion adjutant, met him.
General Singh found Salaria to be a simple man, spartan and very careful with money, unlike other young officers, many of whom had extravagant tastes. In fact, Salaria once told him, he recalled, that he was sending money home to finance the education of his younger brother Sukhdev, at college in Jammu.
Sukhdev is now 75 and lives in Pathankot. He is bedridden and has lost his sense of balance, but he remembers fondly how, when he and Gurbachan were little boys—Gurbachan was older by two years—they would go swimming in the small stream that ran across their village. ‘We had no worries then; we would splash around in the stream. What beautiful days they were. Now Gurbachan is gone and I can’t walk, but whenever I think of him that is the first memory that streams into my head, ‘ says the old man, sinking back into silence. He has more memories to recount but his strength fails him.
This story is based on conversations with Major General (Retd) R. P. Singh, AVSM, VSM, who has written
A Star on the Mount of Jupiter,
a book on Captain Salaria,
Gurbachan’s father Munshi Ram was in the Armoured Corps of the British Indian Army and would move from one Army cantonment to another, coming home only on annual or casual leave. When he did come home it was celebration time in the family. His favourite food would be cooked, the house would sparkle and friends and family drop in to listen to his awe-inspiring tales of faraway places where soldiers performed great acts of bravery. Little Gurbachan and his siblings would listen to their father in rapt attention as he sat smoking his hookah. Quite possibly this is how Gurbachan was inspired to be courageous.
Gurbachan’s mother Dhan Devi had never been to school and was completely occupied with her growing children. She was, however, very particular that her children’s education did not suffer despite living in a village. Gurbachan would go to school regularly, but was always more occupied with games and outdoor activities rather than studying. He was a good kabaddi player, and continued to be good at sports even after he cleared the entrance to King George’s Royal Military College (KGRMC), Bangalore, at 11 years of age. Though he was initially rejected in the physical exam because his chest was found to be an inch less than the stipulated measurements, he was given a month to try again. He took the challenge head on, drinking one litre of goat’s milk every day and exercising passionately.
When he went back for his medical, he had managed to increase his chest by two-and-a-half inches and was immediately admitted. He joined the college in August 1946 as a cadet. In 1947, he was transferred to KGRMC Jullundur, which was closer to his village.
When he was in his second year, Gurbachan and a friend were once bullied and insulted by another cadet. Gurbachan’s self-respect took a blow but he challenged the bully to a boxing match the next day. He boxed with such fury that the bully was knocked out and had to apologize. The operation in Congo was very reminiscent of this incident; where Gurbachan took on a much bigger and better equipped enemy fighting force just because he wanted to teach them a lesson in war ethics.
Gurbachan went on to the National Defence Academy and then the Indian Military Academy. He joined 2/3 Gorkha Rifles in July 1954 where because of his cropped hair cut and upturned moustache he was nicknamed Khan Saheb by his commanding officer. In March 1960, he received orders transferring him to 3/1 Gorkha Rifles. And that was where General R. P. Singh, who was then the battalion adjutant, met him.
General Singh found Salaria to be a simple man, spartan and very careful with money, unlike other young officers, many of whom had extravagant tastes. In fact, Salaria once told him, he recalled, that he was sending money home to finance the education of his younger brother Sukhdev, at college in Jammu.
Sukhdev is now 75 and lives in Pathankot. He is bedridden and has lost his sense of balance, but he remembers fondly how, when he and Gurbachan were little boys—Gurbachan was older by two years—they would go swimming in the small stream that ran across their village. ‘We had no worries then; we would splash around in the stream. What beautiful days they were. Now Gurbachan is gone and I can’t walk, but whenever I think of him that is the first memory that streams into my head, ‘ says the old man, sinking back into silence. He has more memories to recount but his strength fails him.
This story is based on conversations with Major General (Retd) R. P. Singh, AVSM, VSM, who has written
A Star on the Mount of Jupiter,
a book on Captain Salaria,