Operation Dwarka Operation Somnath |
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Part of Naval conflict of Indo-Pakistani War of 1965 | |||||
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Belligerents | |||||
Pakistan Navy |
Indian Navy |
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Commanders and leaders | |||||
Commodore S.M. Anwar | Rear Admiral K.P. Samson | ||||
Units involved | |||||
25th Destroyer Squadron | |||||
Strength | |||||
PNS Babur PNS Khaibar PNS Badr PNS Jahangir PNS Shah Jahan PNS Alamgir PNS Tippu Sultan PNS Ghazi |
Unknown (Ships were kept at bay) |
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Casualties and losses | |||||
None | Partial physical damage to Dwarka town. | ||||
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Operation Dwarka was a naval operation commenced by the Pakistan Navy to attack the Indian coastal town of Dwarka on 7 September 1965. This was the first use of Pakistan Navy in any of the Indo-Pakistan Wars. It was one of the significant naval events of the 1965 Indo-Pak war, and Pakistan celebrates 8 September as "Victory Day" for Pakistan Navy.
As the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965 broke out between India and Pakistan over Kashmir, armies and air forces of both nations were involved in intense fighting in the Punjab region and in Kashmir. To relieve pressure on the southern front, Pakistan decided to use its navy in the war by launching a quick strike on Indian coast. The primary objective of the attack ostensibly was to destroy the radar station at Dwarka which Pakistani Naval intelligence believed had a Huff-Duff beacon to guide Indian bombers. Pakistani high command also hoped to divert the operations of the Indian Air Force away from the north.