Ian Cardozo, The Fearless Major, Who Amputated His Own Leg During 1971 War

Major general Ian Anthony Joseph Cardozo, an officer who amputated his leg on the battlefield. This fearless officer was a major general of Gorkha Rifles.

He was born in 1937 to a middle-class family in Mumbai. However, this does not decide what the future holds for him, his dreams were never common, and one can see that with the amount of admiration he receives now.

Since his childhood, he had this desire and a spark to do something for his nation and knew only one way to achieve this, and that was Army. So after his college studies, he enrolled in National Defense Academy and joined forces soon after completing his training. He got a place in the Gorkha Rifle during training with his excellent performance, as mentioned by Jagran TV

Situations During The 1971 Indo-Pak War

In 1947 with the ongoing tension between India and Pakistan, there seemed a possibility of war, and in a short time, this news was confirmed. This war broke out for the Independence of East Pakistan. In the beginning, Ian Cardozo was not part of this war; however, when one of the officers was martyred while fighting with the Pakistan army, Ian was sent to war in his replacement. During this span, he also became a part of the first Helicopter mission of the Indian Army.

Notwithstanding the adverse situation, he fought. He fought even when they were running out of food and ammunition. With every passing day, the war was getting intense; all the units were waiting for backup from the Army. Meanwhile, Ian's contingent got a task of getting out some Bangladeshi prisoners trapped nearby, along with BSF, he had to carry out this mission. During this mission, Ian volunteered to help those prisoners and quickly started his way towards them but little did he know that the Pakistani Army laid land mines, so with his few steps towards lending his help, he fell on the mine with a loud bang and his whole body was bleeding.

He was noticed by a Bangladeshi and received help from him. Soon after this, he was taken to his camp. However, there was no doctor to treat him, which tensioned everyone. Nevertheless, he got back in his senses, his condition was still critical. His leg was in no good state, which ultimately led him to cut off his leg due to the unavailability of a doctor, proper medication and since nobody was ready to amputate his leg.

Sooner, they triumphed and made arrangements to take the Army back to the country. After returning, Major General received appreciation and was awarded the 'Sena Medal' for his bravery. His valour is still glorified and remembered.

Anecdotes By Ian Cardozo

Indian Army major general Ian Cardozo marks 50 years of the war that defined him and India in his book' '1971'. Major general Ian Cardozo, in his book, reminisces and narrates war efforts on land and sea and describes how a very public mistake ended up helping India. The book is dedicated to members of the Indian Armed Forces, who stood together like a shield in the moments of trial and tribulations, eventually turned the victory in the name of their nation. The triumph led to the liberation of East Pakistan and the birth of Bangladesh, as reiterated by The Hindu

The book is an anecdotal narration of stories by those who witnessed the unfolding events. Hence the book is the personal experiences of participation by Cardozo. The book is based on the oral and written narratives of the contributors and also on the historical facts and recorded interviews of the officers and soldiers.

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