Bengaluru: Today (October 27) is celebrated as Infantry Day. Prime Minister Narendra Modi tweeted his best wishes on the occasion. 

He wrote on his twitter: “On Infantry Day, greetings to our valorous infantrymen. Our infantry personifies diligence and bravery. Every Indian is grateful to our infantry for their outstanding service.” 

 

Significance of Infantry Day

It was on this day in the year 1947 that for the first time that Indian troops (First Battalion of the Sikh Regiment) were airlifted from Delhi and landed in Srinagar. Why? Well, after Maharaja Hari Singh signed the instrument of accession, making Jammu and Kashmir an integral part of India, tribals from Pakistan and supported by its army attacked the state. 

The attack from the Pakistani side was called Operation Gulmarg. 

The then Prime Minister Jawarharlal Nehru ordered this action against the tribals. 
More on Operation Gulmarg

Hostilities began in early October 1947, when a tribal rebellion was instigated in Poonch in Southwest Kashmir. By October 20, 1947 the Pakistani Army entered the conflict in support of the tribal forces.

On October 22, 1947, a Lashkar of 5,000 tribals invaded the Kashmir Valley from Abbottabad. Maharaja Hari Singh signed the Instrument of Accession on October 26, 1947, thus making Jammu and Kashmir an integral part of India and the Indian Army was thereafter ordered to evict the invaders. 

Later in the day, it was reported that footpath vendors in the valley boycotted the call observe Infantry Day as black day, a first in several decades. 

Not just that, even private transport, including cabs was normal. Business was reported to be usual from various parts of the state. 

It is the separatists who had given a call for observing October 27 as black day.