‘When you go home, tell them of us, for your tomorrow, we gave our today
is the epitaph written in Kohima War Memorial.
The above world famous verse, attributed to John Maxwell, is said to have been inspired by Simonides to honour few Spartans (Greeks) who, fell at the battle of Thermopylae in 1840 BC to save Europe.
Jemadar (Jem) Parkash Singh Chib is one such Spartan who gave his life fighting against mighty Japanese. He is the first recipient of ‘Victoria Cross’ (VC) from J&K. It is the highest and most prestigious British and Commonwealth Award. VC was awarded for the most conspicuous gallantry in the face of enemy during the war. Our PVC is equivalent of VC.
b. 01/04/1913 Jammu and Kashmir, Kashmir, India. d. 17/02/1945 Kanlan Ywathit, Burma.
Prakash Singh Chib (1913-1945)Son of Udham Singh; husband of Giano, of Kanachak, Kathua, Kashmir was born on 1st April 1913 in the disputed Jammu and Kashmir region of British India. Little is known of his early life before he enlisted in the 4/13th Frontier Force Rifles of the Indian Army in the early years of World War II. He was promoted to the rank of Jemadar shortly before his actions in Burma in February 1945 which led to the award of a posthumous VC.
On 16th/17th February 1945 at Kanlan Ywathit, Burma (now Myanmar), Jemadar Prakash Singh Chib was commanding a platoon which took the main weight of fierce enemy attacks. He was wounded in both ankles and relieved of his command, but when his second-in-command was also wounded, he crawled back and took command of his unit again, directing operations and encouraging his men. He was wounded in both legs a second time, but he continued to direct the defense, dragging himself from place to place by his hands. When wounded a third time and final time, he lay shouting the Dogra war-cry as he died, inspiring his company that finally drove off the enemy.
When 32-year-old Prakash Singh Chib was hurt in both his ankles, he was told to step down during the ambush at Kanlan Ywathit in Burma. A Jemadar in the 4/13th Frontier Force Rifles, he couldn’t stand it when the second-in-command was also wounded. Angered, he forgot all about his pain and wounds, and crawled back to position. He commanded his unit, ordering positions, firing at the enemy. He was shot at again – twice – but he only dragged himself from point to point with his hands. He refused to give up and instilled confidence in his platoon members to drive out the enemy. He succumbed to his injuries soon after.
Sadly, Prakash Singh’s body was not recovered after the battle, and he is commemorated on the Rangoon Memorial. His medals are not publicly held and believed to still be in the family. A statue of Singh was built at the village of Nud, Tehsil Akhnoor in Jammu by the Chib Community under the guidance of Raghunath Singh Chib (IAS) of village Deva Batala, Teh- Bhimbar, Dist - Mirpur (whose family is in Jammu (India). In his memory a function is celebrated every year in February. On this date 1000 Indian Rupees is distributed to war widows.
LOCATION OF MEDAL: NOT PUBLICLY HELD.
BURIAL PLACE: NO KNOWN GRAVE - ON RANGOON MEMORIAL, BURMA. FACE 43.
Jem Parkash Singh Chib was born on 1st April 1913 at Chibe-Chak in Hiranagar, where his ancestors had migrated from Batala. He was Jem in the ’14th Battalion of 13th Frontier Force’. His unit was part of Gen William Slim’s 14th Army which drove back the Japanese from Manipur – Nagaland during the second great war.
(Jemadar was a title of the Indian subcontinent. It is a word from Urdu and Persian languages. A Jem was an armed official of Zamindars, (feudal lords), who, like a military commander was in charge of conducting warfare and controlling the peasants who lived on the lord’s land. Later, it became a rank of the Indian Army, where it was the lowest rank for a Viceroy’s Commissioned Officers. Jem generally commanded a platoon (Pl), a sub-unit of 30 to 40 men and assisted British commanders in administering Indian troops. They also held lower regimental positions such as Jemadar-Quartermaster or Jemadar Adjutant. The rank remained in the Army until 1965 when it was replaced by Naib-Subedar).
On the fateful 16th-17th February 1945 night, Jem Parkash Singh’s Pl was in a defensive position at Kanlan Ywathit Post in Burma. His Pl held the forward post of the Company which took the main weight of the fierce Japanese attack. Despite being wounded four times he kept fighting and inspiring his men for hours together till the last breath. The citation for valour appended below is self explanatory of the valour of this Dogra warrior. Hence the comparison of this defensive battle with the battle of Thermopylae in which a very small contingent of Spartan defeated a very large Persian Army.
At Kanlan Ywathit, in Burma, on the night of 16th/17th February 1945, Jemadar Parkash Singh was in command of a Platoon of a rifle company occupying a company defended locality. At about 2300 hours, the Japanese in great strength and supported by artillery, mortars, machine guns and subsequently flame throwers initiated a series of fierce and bloody attacks on the position. The main weight of the attack was directed against Jemadar Parkash Singh’s platoon locality. At about 2330 hours Jemadar Parkash Singh was severely wounded in both ankles by enemy machine gun fire and was unable to walk about in his sector. His company Commander, on being informed of this, ordered him to be relieved and brought into a trench beside Company Headquarters from where he kept shouting encouragement to all his men. A short time afterwards, owing to the relief having been wounded, Jemadar Parkash Singh crawled forward dragging himself on his hands and knees to his platoon sector and again took over command.
At 0015 hours, when his Company Commander visited the platoon area, Jemadar Parkash Singh was found propped up by his batman, who had also been wounded, firing his platoon 2 inch mortar, the crew of which had been killed, shouting encouragement to his men and directing the fire of the platoon. Having expended all the available ammunition of 2 inch mortar this V.C.O, then crawled around the position collecting ammunition for his platoon from the dead and wounded. This ammunition he distributed himself. As one complete section of his platoon had by now become casualties, Jemadar Parkash Singh took over this section’s Bren Gun and held the section’s sector of the perimeter single handed until reinforcements were rushed up by the Company Commander. He fired the gun at this stage from a position completely in the open as he was unable to stand up in a trench. He was again wounded in both legs above the knees by a burst of machine gun fire. In spite of intense pain and the loss of much blood from his wounds this Jemadar continued firing his Bren Gun and dragging himself from place to place only by use of his hands as his legs were now completely useless. At the same time he continued to encourage and direct his men, regrouping the remnants of his platoon around him, so that they successfully held up a fierce Japanese charge which was launched against them. At 0145 hours, Jemadar Parkash Singh was wounded for the third time in the right leg and was so weak from the loss of blood that he was unable to move. Bleeding profusely and lying on his right side with his face towards the enemy, he continued to direct the action of his men, encouraging them to stay their ground. Although it was obvious that he was now dying, Jemadar Parkash Singh shouted out the Dogra War Cry, ‘Jawala Mata Ki jai’ which was immediately taken up by the rest of the company engaged in hand to hand fight within the perimeter of his locality. His example and leadership at this period so inspired the company that the enemy was finally driven out from the position.
At 0230 hours Jemadar Parkash Singh was wounded for a fourth time, this time in the chest by a Japanese grenade. He died a few minutes later telling his Company Commander not to worry about him for he could easily look after himself.
Throughout the period of intense hand to hand fight and heavy machine gun and grenade fire from 2300 hours until the time of his death at 0230 hours, Jemadar Parkash Singh conducted himself with conspicuous bravery with complete disregard to his severe wounds and there is no doubt that his ceaseless encouragement of his platoon, his inspired leadership and outstanding devotion to duty, though himself mortally wounded, played an outstanding part in finally repelling the Japanese with heavy casualties.
He was cremated in Burma. But no Samadhi or memorial has been made on that spot in the memory of this great warrior. Surprisingly nor any memorial / samadhi was separately built in his honour elsewhere. The British have invariably created war memorials in almost all the war theatres wherever they fought fierce battles and lost their soldiers. But Jem Parkash Singh’s name is conspicuously inscribed in the Rangoon War Memorial amongst five Indian and seven other commonwealth VC awardees. The Government of Jammu & Kashmir under Maharaja Hari Singh recognized his martyrdom and awarded him a war Jagir in Rajbagh, Kathua where his grandsons presently live.
Later at the initiative of late Raghunath Singh Chib, IAS who had been Dy Commissioner Jammu, a statue of Jem Praksh Singh Chib was installed at their Devsthan in village Nud on Akhnoor Chhamb Road and a Victoria Cross Charitable Society formed by the Chib Community. Family of Raghunath Singh Chib is involved in keeping the memories of Jem Parksh Singh Chib alive. They organise a function in his memory every year on 16 February at his memorial to commemorate the valour of this son of the soil. This year the commemorative function was held on 19 March for some unavoidable reasons which was presided over by Maj Gen Harash Gupta, GOC 10 Inf Div who is also ex-officio Chairperson of Victoria Cross Charitable Society. The Chib family deserve compliments for their commitment in organizing this glorious event with the help of the army and galvanising the society in remembering our role models.
What do we learn from Jem Parkash Singh’s martyrdom? What we do in life echoes in eternity. We may have no idea what eternal effect can come from something (in)significant we are doing today or will do tomorrow. Stories of Jem Sahib are unparalleled and eternal of which JnK is proud of. They gave their life for us and our future. Duggerland has innumerable such martyrs who have left their foot prints on the sands of war zones and must be remembered.
War veterans and others paying floral tributes to 2nd World War hero, Jemedar PS Chib in Akhnoor.
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