Book Review

The Writing on the Wall: General S Padmanabhan, published 2004 by Manas Publications. 300 pages and 26 chapters organized into three parts. ISBN 81-7049-175-4.

“He has us fighting the Americans!” snorted the young Major derisively as he and I traveled together on a bus to Bikaner. I asked him if he had read General Padmanabhan’s book. No and he didn’t wish to read such wishful thinking either, was the reply. The sub-heading of the General’s Book, The Writing On The Wall reads: “India Checkmates America 2017”. Certain reviews published in national dailies have also dwelt on this part of the book, describing the use of “cyber warfare” and “EMP” by India to defeat America. All this has unfortunately created a false impression of this fine piece of writing by the former Chief of Army Staff.

A National Endeavor

So is it about a war with the US? Yes, but with several ifs: if the neocons implement the Project for a new American Century; if America does not play fair at the WTO; if it continues to wink over the wrongdoings of the Pakistan Army; if it bullies the UN. Taking all these assumptions the General concludes that India would have to start preparing now for the eventual war against hegemonism (his phrase) that the emerging economies will have to fight against the lone hegemon. The major part of the book is about this preparation.

The characters that give voice to these assumptions are an informal club (the General uses this term) of bureaucrats and soldiers who meet to discuss situations that occur in 2003. Be it Gulf War II or the American request for an Indian stabilization force, the club tears apart the American position on both matters. This is a little surprising, considering that India came so close to joining ranks with the western coalition. The General also gives a refreshing insight into the American policy of interventionism (now known as pre-emption) in Latin America and Eastern Europe.

Further provocation comes in 2004 when an Indo-Pak clash on the LOC leads to India’s recapture of the Haji Pir Pass. American pressure to withdraw prompts the Indian political class to form a national government … an independent Member of Parliament at its head as Prime Minister. This national government implements the national agenda and the national defence plan for the armed forces. And yet general elections are held regularly … but without any party manifestos! The electorate merely chooses the best candidate who in any case can only implement the national agenda.

The General’s Plan

The national agenda is the product of a military mind that identifies an objective, draws up a plan, and executes it with single-minded determination. Separatism, left-wing extremism, communal tensions, alienation … the national government boldly provides imaginative solutions to these long-festering problems. And it is not restricted to politics or internal security.

The General gives an overview of India’s economic growth sparked by two projects that he describes at length: the National Highways and the National Water Grid projects. He also turns threats into opportunities when describing the outsourcing backlash in the US. The General portrays a reverse brain-drain coupled with the inherent patriotism of overseas Indians, which enables Indian industry to create new capacities in IT hardware and software. Furthermore a string of good monsoons propel the GDP growth rate to the 10% mark.

General Padmanabhan impresses the reader with the breadth of his knowledge and his writing style, which is thorough yet racy … he does not get lost in details and keeps the story moving. However at several places the former Army Chief slips into first person, detaches himself from the story and addresses the reader directly, adopting a what-we-should-do-next tone. This is out of place in a work of fiction.

And publisher please note; while there are no typos and the printing is crisp, throughout the novel conversations between characters are lumped together in paragraphs, making it difficult to know which character is saying what?

Whither CDS?

The national agenda also includes a program for improving relations with neighbours, with stress laid on security alignment and economic cooperation. So one reads with satisfaction as the LTTE in Sri Lanka and the Maoists in Nepal are tackled and eventually pacified. Relations with China enter a new phase of bonhomie, which sees the dragon joining India, ASEAN, Russia, and others in an Asian Security Environment. Fair enough.

But the General makes China dump Pakistan and eventually sign a defence treaty with India, on the lines of the famous Indo-Soviet treaty of 1971. He rightly lambasts America’s financial backing of the Pakistan Army but declines to mention that China too shares a cozy relationship with that same Army. Moreover the former Army Chief does not discuss China’s interest in oil, in the Central Asian Region, and in the Muslim world. These are long-term interests but find no mention in this book.

Another missing piece in this well-crafted story is the Chief of Defense Staff. Now the integrated defence staff headquarters was up and running in General Padmanbhan’s tenure as COAS but he makes no reference to it. There is however a Strategic Forces Command which reports to the Chairman Chiefs of Staff Committee.

This is not a problem for the story though, since it is now 2010 and the members of the club have been promoted. Two of these are the Army and Air Chiefs, both also batch mates who enable joint planning between their services and air-land integration in conflict.

Joining the action

The former Army Chief is brilliant in describing the action on the ground; be it counter-insurgency operations or live testing of new weapon systems. The conflict begins in 2010 with the Lohri-day massacre in Jammu (remember Kaluchak 2002?). The Indian Army responds with a terrible fire assault all along the LOC while the IAF neutralizes enemy gun positions and shoots down ageing F-16s. The Pakistani DGMO begs for a ceasefire. India and China sign a defense pact.

In 2014 Indian forces rescue the Hizbul Mujahideen supremo from ISI captivity. His cadres lay down their arms and join J&K state’s ecological task force for employment. The ISI instructs the Laskar-e-toiba to take revenge by striking a convoy on the Jammu-Srinagar highway. India responds by striking LET bases in Kotli and Muzzafrabad and by carrying out an aerial blitz on Muridke. Pakistan threatens the US with an imminent takeover by Jihadis and the Americans are compelled to sign a defense pact with that country.

While sane voices caution against this arrangement, the American President is desperate to stop the formation of the Asian Security Environment. He instructs the Special Operations Component from both the Pacific Command and the Central Command to deploy in South Asia and in league with the CIA and the ISI “keep India busy”. After that … get the book to read what happens next!

The General impresses

This is a good book. What makes it fascinating is the vast breadth of topics covered while narrating an action-packed story … and a first-time effort at that. Extraordinary! If you get it for the action you won’t be disappointed. You will find the decision-making process and all the strategic maneuvering equally pulse-quickening.

General Padmanabhan is particularly good at describing India’s science & technology establishments devoted to defense research. His description is detailed and yet succinct enough to hold the reader’s attention. But what leaves one in awe is his proposed handling of internal security matters, be it the north-east or the naxal affected regions. The former army chief does not just make it happen; he lays down the method and step-by-step approach which will help India in pacifying and developing these regions.

This in fact is the running thread in this book: the vision for a new India. If you liked the books by President Kalam then you will appreciate General Padmanabhan’s effort, spiced up as it is with war sequences. People may buy the book for the action but they will cherish it for the General’s vision.

Airavat Singh