Pakistanis could have fought a month: Aạrora
Lt. General J. S. Aurora, GOC-in-C, Eastern Command, was accorded a warm reception at a function at Press Club, Calcutta on Saturday, when he expressed the view that it was the reluctance to retreat by Pakistani troops, which paid rich dividends to the Indian army.
Giving a detailed account of the victory of Indian troops in the 14-day Indo-Pakistani war. Lt. General said that the firearms which the Pakistani army had with them could enable them to continue their resistance at least for one more month. But the strategy of isolating the enemies from the rest of the Mukti Bahini compelled them to surrender . He said the Pakistani army, who fought better than they fought in the 1965 Indo-Pakistani war, But still they had to go down before the Indian troops, which fought gallantly and “very effectively”,
Replying to a question Lt. General said that Pakistani troops, which were fed much more by the us arms aid than by the Chinese ones, followed ‘mobile tactics’ a common thing in modern warfare. He admitted that Indian troops had to make a show of having greater manpower and modern sophisticated war weapons than they actually had, and this helped achieve a quickest victory.
The reception was attended among others by the IG of Police, the Commissioner of Police. Calcutta and other dignitaries.
Reference: Hindustan Standard 10.1.1972