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[Best to post this while I can...]

India News Wrap-Up: Q1/22

9 January 1922

Just weeks after starting flight operations, there has been a fatal accident aboard the aviation ship Otta. One of the ship’s Dhairya scout aeroplanes crashed on landing, killing its pilot and observer.

“We’re still interviewing crewmen who witnessed the crash. For now it appears that the aeroplane was low and clipped the edge of the deck with its landing gear, causing it to flip over”, said Commander Mohammad Pevan of the Military Investigative Branch. “Both crewmen were killed instantly.”

Several crewmen were treated for non-life threatening injuries after being struck by flying debris. Damage to the Otta was described as superficial.

13 January 1922

India’s naval shipyards are buzzing with activity, a sight relatively uncommon across the world as the Cleito Treaty takes its toll on shipbuilding. Eight of nine dedicated military slipways are in the process of building destroyers, minesweepers, sloops, and auxiliaries as part of the navy’s Sea Control program.

Admiral Sanjay Das, who was on hand for the launch of the survey ship Palk Bay earlier this month, commented, “Our first and greatest priority must be an ability to prevent sea denial activities aimed at disrupting our merchantile shipping in time of war. A strong force of anti-submarine and mine-warfare vessels is the key to this goal.”

4 February 1922

After three years of serious experimentation, the Indian Army is equipping its first combat unit with armored vehicles. The First Jagganatta* Battalion will be deployed to the Eight Field Force, which is situated along the border with British Pakistan, later in the year.

The battalion is expected to consist of three combat companies, each with a different type of vehicle. One company will be equipped with Sher (“Lion”) tanks, which are reported to be equipped with a 1.4" cannon and four machine guns. Another company will field the Gadaa (“Bludgeon”), which carries four 0.6" machine guns and two light machine guns. The third company will operate armored cars mounting two 0.6" machine guns on a wheeled chassis.

All three vehicle types are the result of experiments performed by the army’s 48th Motorized Cavalry Regiment, based near Delhi. That unit has tasked with developing and testing a range of motorized vehicles with military applications.


*OOC: Jagganatta is the term from which the word juggernaut is derived; it refers to a practice in which devoted worshippers would throw themselves under the wheels of carts and wagons bearing religious decor.

20 February 1922

India has asked the League of Nations to grant it a mandate over As Salif and several other towns on the western shore of the Arabian Peninsula. “Our intention is to ensure the security of As Salif and other settlements in Asir until such time as the citizenry can determine its future without fear of war. This will be made difficult without the support of the League.”

A civil war has been ongoing in the region for some time, and has resulted in numerous skirmishes in the proposed area, some of them with Indian soldiers. Although conservative forces under Prince Saud are thought to be winning the war, both India and Great Britain have described the situation as “fluid”.

There is no firm figure on the population of the proposed mandate, but it is estimated at XXX.

28 February 1922

The Yemeni government in Sana’a has denounced India’s request for an As Salif mandate as nothing more than “a veil concealing stark imperialist desires.” A statement released to several newspapers further indicated that the national security of Yemen would be endangered by a long term presence of India military forces on its northern border.

“Yemen has been strongly against India’s presence on the peninsula since even before the whole unfortunate business with Raveena Pillai”, commented Dr. Erik Gerhardt, a professor of political science at the Frankfurt State University in Germany. “As a small and relatively weak nation, there is an understandable fear that any larger nation will be tempted to annex it.” As with many other aspects of Arabian geography, there is little known of the size and capability of Yemen’s army. Nor have the Indians discussed what manner of military presence it would have in As Salif.

Professor Gerhardt suggests that while India has ulterior motives behind its request to receive a mandate, it is not based on imperialism. “I think there’s a combination of saving face and gaining status at work here. Certainly it would be embarrassing for the Raj to see the town assaulted by one of the local factions the day after his soldiers boarded their transports; there would be voices asking why India allowed it to happen. If, however, the mandate is awarded, India can take the time to ensure an orderly departure - and, at the same time, make a political statement about its ability to influence regional affairs.”