War Echoes in Patna: Memories of 1971 and the City's War-Time Drills

For Patna, mock drills and sirens were nothing new. In 1962, underground bunkers were also prepared in Patna City. The author recounts his experiences as a student at Patna College in 1971, when Pakistan attacked India.

As a student at Patna College in 1971, I vividly remember the war-time drills and emergency operations that were carried out in the city. R.N. Das, the then District Magistrate, was in charge of the Civil Defence Organisation and oversaw the emergency operations.

Sirens were installed at strategic locations across the city, including Bankipore Girls High School,Harmandir saheb,Gulzarbag government Press,Bihari ji Mills, Golghar, and Darbhanga House. As evening fell, the entire city would go dark for several hours, with people avoiding even the use of lanterns. All shops were expected to close at night, and underground trench bunkers were built in areas like Yarpur and Chitkohra.

The city's railway stations, including Patna and Patna Sahib, would also be plunged into darkness. Secretariat employees would be allowed to leave work before sunset, and people relied on transistor radios for news broadcasts from All India Radio.

In those days, a Hindi professor at Patna's B.N. College, Rameshwar Singh Kashyap, had written a popular radio serial called Loha Singh, which began during the war with China. The serial became a staple of evening entertainment, with characters like Fatak Baba and Khaderan's mother becoming household names.

Fifty years ago, Patna was a much smaller town. People arriving by night trains would only leave the station in the morning, and doors and windows at home were tightly shut at night.

Those were tumultuous times, but the city's resilience and community spirit shone through. As we look back on those days, we are reminded of the importance of preparedness and community in the face of adversity.