Heights of Maddness

HEIGHTS OF MADNESS. One Woman’s Journey in Pursuit of a Secret War. By Myra MacDonald. Pp. 242, 14 colour photos, 2007. (Rupa and co., New Delhi, Rs. 395).

Any book or study on the conflict on the Siachen glacier has to consider the politics of war between India and Pakistan. No one is better suited to do this than Myra MacDonald who was a correspondent for news agency Reuters based in Delhi. In that capacity she had access to political bigwigs (her book was released by then the Defence Minister of India). She visited Pakistan few times and established contacts with the army there. She visited the Siachen glacier from the Indian side. First time she could not fly over the glacier, which she did during the second visit in poor weather.

The book is not only about the Siachen glacier, the war and politics associated with it. Like a reporter she describes life in Delhi, Rohtak, and visiting friends in higher circles, in the army and otherwise. The descriptions are typical of a foreign reporter; ‘half starved cows wandered the streets,….’, ‘monkeys that had infested the buildings (of the Defence Ministry)’ – description of life in Delhi and little on history of India.

All these are like a travelogue and has no relation with the Siachen war, which is the title of the book. She has interviewed Subedar Bana Singh who captured the high post, now named after him. The description of battles, like this one and at Bilafond la are well researched. Talking with various Generals and officials the book narrates events that led to the war and reasons for it. Training of soldiers, hardships they face, food they eat, psychological impact and equipment they use. The major lacuna in the book is that no maps are given, it is very difficult, if not very irritating, to follow the war, its politics, and stories without knowing where it is being fought. It is evident that the Indian army was reluctant, as always, to let a foreigner fly or visit the glacier despite orders from higher quarters. Thus from the Indian side what she observed was a cursory glance. The Pakistan army received her well. A special briefing was organised, many young and senior officers put forward their views and narrated battles.

The story of the ‘Model Martyr’ Captain Iqbal is touching. The young officer had written a Will before going for the battle instructing to pay ‘his bills to the mess, the laundryman, and the cobbler’ too. He died in the battle and was a hero for the Pakistani troops. She is given a tour of Goma, Ghyari and Ali Brangza, what Pakistani army calls, ‘line of actual contact’ and observes the troops there. Due to this welcoming treatment by the Pakistani army the book tilts toward their view points, even though Pakistan does not control any bit of Siachen. Perhaps this is the lesson for the Indian army – to handle public relations as well as the war they fight.

The human stories from both sides of the border are examples of sacrifices the young are making. Their beliefs and commitment to their nations are total. But when one comes to the need for this war, wanting the territory under control and methods of fighting, both are on the other side of the fence. To someone this could be ‘heights of madness’ while to the nations involved in the war, it may be the necessary sacrifices to protect ‘their territory’. It is a curious war in a way. Fighting for the barren land, at great heights and in conditions that kills more soldiers than the bullets. Moreover you do not see the enemy or there are no specific lines drawn. The author reached the base camp on the Indian side, where everything was peaceful, roses flowering and mountainscape was enchanting. ‘Where is the battlefield?’ she asked, bemused. ‘You are standing on it’, the officer replied.

HARISH KAPADIA