Operation Dwarka

This article is about the Pakistan Navy's 1965 Operation Somnath. For Ghaznavid attack on Somnath in 1026, see Sack of Somnath.

Operation Dwarka
Part of the naval conflict of the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965
Date7–8 September 1965
Location
Dwarka, Jamnagar district, Gujarat, India
22°14′N 68°58′E / 22.23°N 68.97°E / 22.23; 68.97
Result

See Aftermath

  • Light damage to Dwarka Town
Belligerents
 Pakistan  India
Commanders and leaders
Commodore S. M. Anwar Rear Admiral B. A. Samson
Units involved

Pakistan Navy

 Indian Navy
Strength
1 light cruiser
(PNS Babur)
6 destroyers
(PNS Khaibar, PNS Badr, PNS Jahangir, PNS Shah Jahan, PNS Alamgir, PNS Tippu Sultan)
1 submarine
(PNS Ghazi)		 unknown
(Ships did not leave port)
Casualties and losses
None None
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Location within India

Operation Dwarka, codenamed as Operation Somnath, was a naval operation by the Pakistan Navy to attack the Indian coastal town of Dwarka on 7 and 8 September 1965. This instance was the first engagement by the Pakistan Navy in any of the Indo-Pakistan Wars.[a]

As the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965 broke out between India and Pakistan over Kashmir, the armies and air forces of both nations were involved in intense fighting in the regions of Punjab and Kashmir. To relieve pressure on the southern front, Pakistan decided to send its navy to launch a strike on the Indian coast. The primary objective of the attack ostensibly was to destroy the radar station at Dwarka which was believed by Pakistani naval intelligence to have a Huff-Duff beacon to guide Indian bombers.[2] Pakistani high command also hoped to divert the operations of the Indian Air Force away from the north.

  1. ^ Read, Anthony; Fisher, David (July 1999). The Proudest Day: India's Long Road to Independence. W. W. Norton & Company. p. 474. ISBN 9780393318982.
  2. ^ Mohan, P. V. S. Jagan; Chopra, Samir (May 2005). The India-Pakistan air war of 1965. Manohar. p. 157. ISBN 978-81-7304-641-4.


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