Ludhiana, Sept. 28 -- As the army prepares to celebrate the 199th Gunners Day on September 28, Brigadier Surinder Singh Gill (retd) - a decorated artillery officer - has reflected on his frontline role during the 1971 war that led to the liberation of Bangladesh.

Then a young gun position officer, Gill's unit advanced 65 km inside East Pakistan (now Bangladesh) during the conflict. "With supply lines cut off, Pakistani troops had no choice but to surrender. Over 93,000 soldiers laid down their arms before our forces, making it the largest military surrender after World War II," he recalled. The captured soldiers were later shifted to special prisoner of war camps across India.

Commissioned as a Second Lieutenant in Haldwani, Gill was de...