Kargil order of battle

US Navy map of Kargil, 2008.

The Kargil War order of battle (KWORBAT), is a deposition and systematic combatant structure of the Indian Army troops and the unified Pakistan Armed Forces combat commands, active in the Kargil region in 1999, during the Kargil War. The Indian Army orbat is based on the publications provided by the Indian military authors, news media and official sources.

The Pakistan orbat is based on the intelligence information provided by the Pakistani media (both electronic and print media), military authors, and Pakistani documentaries made after the 1999 conflict. The Pakistan orbat does not include the separatist fighters who, claimed by India, were also involved in fighting atop the peaks of Kargil.

India

Indian Army infantry battalions were often transferred between brigade commands during the war, so sometimes appear under multiple brigades.

Indian Army

Northern Command

• XV Corps
• XV Corps Artillery Brigade
• HQ 8 Mountain Division

Divisional Brigades

• 8 Mountain Artillery Brigade
• 56 Mountain Brigade (Matayan)
  • 1st Battalion, Naga Regiment
  • 2nd Battalion, Rajputana Rifles
  • 3rd Battalion, Rajputana Rifles
  • 18th Battalion, Garhwal Rifles
  • 13th Battalion, Jammu and Kashmir Rifles
  • 1st Battalion, 3rd Gorkha Rifles
  • 9th Battalion, Parachute Regiment Special Forces
  • ATGM Detachment, 17th Battalion, Brigade of the Guards
• 192 Mountain Brigade
  • 18th Battalion, The Grenadiers
  • 8th Battalion, Sikh Regiment
  • 9th Battalion, Para (Special Forces)
  • ATGM Detachment, 17th Battalion, Brigade of the Guards

Additional brigades

• 121 (Independent) Infantry Brigade
  • 16th Battalion, The Grenadiers
  • 4th Battalion, Jat Regiment
  • 3rd Battalion, Punjab Regiment
  • 10th Battalion, Garhwal Rifles
  • 8th Battalion, Border Security Force
  • ATGM Detachment, 17th Battalion, Brigade of the Guards
• 50 (Independent) Parachute Brigade
  • 6th Battalion, Parachute Regiment
  • 7th Battalion, Parachute Regiment
  • 1st Battalion, Parachute Regiment (Special Forces)
  • ATGM Detachment, 19th Battalion, Brigade of the Guards
• 79 Mountain Brigade (XV Corps reserve)
  • 17th Battalion, Jat Regiment
  • 28th Battalion, Rashtriya Rifles
  • 12th Battalion, Mahar Regiment
  • 2nd Battalion, Naga Regiment

3rd Infantry Division

• 2 Engineer Regiment
• 3 Artillery Brigade
• 70 Infantry Brigade
  • 1st Battalion, 11th Gorkha Rifles
  • 12th Battalion, Jammu and Kashmir Light Infantry
  • 10th Battalion, Parachute Regiment (Special Forces)
  • 1st Battalion, Bihar Regiment
  • Ladakh Scouts
  • 17th Battalion, Garhwal Rifles
  • 5th Battalion, Parachute Regiment
  • 14th Battalion, Sikh Regiment
  • ATGM Detachment, 19th Battalion, Brigade of the Guards
• 102 (Independent) Infantry Brigade
  • 11th Battalion, Rajputana Rifles
  • 9th Battalion, Mahar Regiment
  • 13th Battalion, Kumaon Regiment
  • 27th Battalion, Rajput Regiment
  • High Altitude Warfare School Permanent Cadre Detachment
  • ATGM Detachment, 19th Battalion, Brigade of the Guards

Kargil Theatre Artillery
These units took part in the war serving under various formations:

• 4 Field Regiment (now 4 Medium Regiment (Self Propelled))
• 15 Field Regiment (now 15 Medium Regiment)
• 41 Field Regiment (now 41 Medium Regiment)
• 108 Medium Regiment (now 108 Field Regiment)
• 114 Medium Regiment
• 139 Medium Regiment
• 141 Field Regiment (now 141 Medium Regiment)
• 153 Medium Regiment (Self Propelled)
• 158 Medium Regiment (Self Propelled)
• 197 Field Regiment (now 197 Medium Regiment)
• 212 Rocket Regiment
• 244 Heavy Mortar Regiment (now 244 Field Regiment)
• 253 Medium Regiment
• 255 Field Regiment (now 255 Medium Regiment)
• 286 Medium Regiment (now 286 Field Regiment)
• 305 Medium Regiment (now 305 Field Regiment)
• 307 Medium Regiment
• 315 Field Regiment
• 1861 Light Regiment
• 1889 Light Regiment (now 1889 Missile Regiment)

Other battalions

• • 5th Battalion, Special Frontier Force
  • 663 Reconnaissance & Observation Squadron
  • 668 Reconnaissance & Observation Squadron
  • 13th Battalion, Punjab Regiment
  • 12th Battalion, The Grenadiers
  • 22nd Battalion, The Grenadiers
  • 7th Battalion, Jat Regiment
  • 14th Battalion, Sikh Light Infantry
  • 9th Battalion, Rashtriya Rifles
  • 14th Battalion, Rashtriya Rifles
  • 17th Battalion, Rashtriya Rifles
  • 11th Battalion, Sikh Regiment
  • 3rd Battalion, Jammu and Kashmir Rifles
  • 16th Battalion, Dogra Regiment
  • 5th Battalion, Rajput Regiment
  • 9th Battalion, Mahar Regiment

Indian Air Force

Apart from the involvement of the Indian Army, the Indian Air Force (IAF) also participated in the Kargil War as part of Operation Safed Sagar.

Pakistan

Initially, the Kargil order of battle was planned by the Directorate-General for Military Operations (DGMO), Brig. Gen. Nadeem Ahmed. However, after the IAF strike and Indian advancement in the region, the Pakistan Air Force and the Navy deployed and issued orders to their combat forces. Their missions were to conduct surveillance and air patrolling; no other combat units of PAF and Navy participated in the combat. The inter-services order of battle is mentioned in the table. According to the Pakistan news channels reports and military declassified information, the Kargil infiltration was comprehensively planned by the joint officers at the Joint staff Headquarters, a joint office secretariat which then-served under Gen. Pervez Musharraf.

From the start of the conflict, there were numerous inter-services meetings coordinated by the chairman joint chiefs, to Prime minister Nawaz Sharif. The controversy still surrounds in the military science circle of the Pakistan armed forces, with chief of naval staff and chief of air staff including key theatre commanders of army combatant corps, bringing up the accusations that the Kargil front was launched without their knowledge or confidence.

Pakistan Army

• 5th Battalion, Northern Light Infantry
• 6th Battalion, Northern Light Infantry
• 12th Battalion, Northern Light Infantry
• 13th Battalion, Northern Light Infantry
• 24th Battalion, Sind Regiment
• 27th Battalion, Sind Regiment

Pakistan Air Force

• Note: No PAF F-16s took active participation in the conflict. All PAF missions were to conduct combat air patrols in the area.
  • No. 38 Multirole Group
  • No. 9 Squadron Griffins and No. 11 Squadron Arrows.
    • • The F-16s belonging to Griffins Arrows were deployed in the region. No F-16s took active participation in the conflict.

Pakistan Navy

• Note: No Navy units took active participation. The Navy was on high-alert but strictly ordered by Admiral Bokhari not to escalate the crises into sea. Although, Navy had its own significance in the Kargil theatre, but no crucial operations and efforts were applied or undertaken by Navy to support the army. According to the chief of naval staff, General Pervez Musharraf, as chairman joint chiefs, had failed to take navy into confidence prior to the start of the conflict.
  • Pakistan Navy Commander Karachi
  • Pakistan Naval Air Arm
    • The Pakistan Navy, in a defensive mood, directed all its units to keep clear of Indian naval ships. As the exercise shifted closer to the Makaran Coast, Pakistan moved all its major combatants out of Karachi. The Navy remained on high-alert, although orders were not to escalate the crises to sea. The Navy launched surveillance operations; Karachi port remained on high-alert.

References

27 Sind

Sources

• Indian Army – Kargil War 1999 v.2.0 8 March 2006 Mandeep S. Bajwa & Ravi Rikhye
• Kargil Committee Report Executive Summary