Legendary and celebrated Indian Border Security Force (BSF) official Maj Parimal Kumar Gosh, who reportedly was the first military officer to help freedom fighters in 1971, breathed his last on Thursday in New Delhi, India. He was 84.
Gosh had been suffering from cancer.
His daughter Agomoni Gosh said, "My father Parimal Kumar Ghosh is an unsung hero. His career in the army, BSF and R&AW is one of sheer professional brilliance but one that remained in shadows because of the sensitive nature of his job.
“He died after some suffering that dented his health but not his spirit as he battled cancer with the same zeal as the enemies of the nation. He had a great soft corner for Bangladesh because he was the first Indian to have fought in the 1971 Liberation War,” she added.
During the Pakistani army crackdown on the night of March 25, 1971, and the arrest of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, Maj Ghosh was commanding the F company of the 92nd BSF Battalion in Tripura's Sabroom region, responsible for four border outposts of Amlighat, Samarendragunj, Nalua, and Sreenagar, according to Sukharanjan Das Gupta, who covered the Liberation War from Anandabazar.
The war veteran divulged in detail his story in the “Bordermen 2021” article under the subheading “FIRST CROSSING OVER AND FORMATION OF FIRST MUKTI BAHINI BY BSF,”
“At about 1700 hrs formed the 1st Group of Mukti Bahini with 6 EPR boys under Hav Nooruddin, gave them motivational talk and oath on the spot. Deployed them in groups of 3 each, on either flank of Northern end of Subhapur bridge with clear instructions to deny entry of Pak soldiers to the villages and water point, also to fire only one round at a time to conserve own ammunition and draw fire from Pak troops.
"I returned to my Srinagar BOP at about 1900 hrs and initiated a special SITREP without mentioning my crossing over the international border.”
Suresh Dutta, a former inspector general of the BSF, said, “Ghosh dada was my predecessor in BSF G branch in Agartala, always a hotspot because of proximity to Bangladesh's major nerve centres. He set high professional standards not easy to emulate. A legend has passed away.”
