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Introduction 1
Role of Indian in the Second World War 2

Contribution of Indian soldiers in World War II 3-5

Japanese Bombing in Calcutta 6-8

Areas In Kolkata Severely Affected During 9-13

World War II
Story of Bomb Attack 14-15
Operation Creek By The British 16

Untold story 17-18

Conclusion 19
Acknowledgement 20
Bibliography 21
World War II or the Second World War,
often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a
global conflict that lasted from 1939 to
1945. The vast majority of the world's
countries, including all of the great powers,
fought as part of two opposing military
alliances: the Allies and the Axis. Many
participants threw their economic,
industrial, and scientific capabilities behind
this total war, blurring the distinction
between civilian and military resources.
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During the Second World War (1939–1945),
India was a part of the British Empire. India
officially declared war on Nazi Germany in
September 1939. India, as a part of the Allied
Nations, sent over two and a half million
soldiers to fight under British command
against the Axis powers. India was also used
as the base for American operations in
support of China in the China Burma India
Theater.
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Indians fought with distinction throughout the
world, including in the European theatre
against Germany, North African Campaign
against fascist Italy, and in the southeast Asian
theatre; while also defending the Indian
subcontinent against the Japanese forces,
including British Burma and the Crown colony
of Ceylon.

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 Viceroy Linlithgow declared that India was at war with Germany without
consultations with Indian politicians.[6] Political parties such as the Muslim
League and the Hindu Mahasabha supported the British war effort while the
largest and most influential political party existing in India at the time, the Indian
National Congress, demanded independence before it would help Britain.

London refused, and when Congress announced a "Quit India"

campaign in August 1942, tens of thousands of its leaders were imprisoned by
the British for the duration. Meanwhile, under the leadership of Indian leader
Subhash Chandra Bose, Japan set up an army of Indian POWs known as the
Indian National Army, which fought against the British. A major famine in Bengal in
1943 led to between 0.8 and 3.8 million deaths due to starvation, and a highly
controversial issue remains regarding Churchill's alleged decision to not provide
emergency food relief.
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The primary mission of the Indian Army
is to ensure national security and national
unity, to defend the nation from external
aggression and internal threats, and to
maintain peace and security within its
borders.

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By India Today Web Desk: On December 20, 1942, bombers of the Imperial
Japanese Army Air Force (IJAAF) bombed the city, damaging its
infrastructure and bringing sorrow to the entire city of joy. This happened
in doom of second world war which destroyed many cities around the
globe.

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 It was on the night of December 20, 1942, that the first
officially recorded attack by Japanese bombers took place. Bombs
dropped all over the city, and records would show that Dalhousie
Square, Mangoe lane and Hatibagan were some of the areas that
were directly affected by the attack.

There were repeated air attacks between December 20 and

28, 1942. One of the bombs slightly damaged an oil plant in Budge
Budge. There was no military damage, but a few civilians lost their
lives.
By now, the earlier rumours that since Netaji Subash
Bose was on their side, the Japanese would not attack Calcutta were
falling apart. The Japanese had fooled the allies and attacked an
almost defenceless city, solely to paralyse the docks and the supply
route through Calcutta port. People had started to lose confidence in
their British rulers. The Japanese had fooled the allies and attacked
an almost defenceless city, solely to paralyse the docks and the
supply route through Calcutta port. People had started to lose
confidence in their British rulers.
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Bombs dropped all over the city, and records would show
that Dalhousie Square, Mangoe lane and Hatibagan were some of the
areas that were directly affected by the attack.

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The Kidderpore Dock in
Kolkata got worst-hit by
the bombings in 1943,
more so because the
Japanese wanted to cut
off the supply lines to
China.

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The Victoria Memorial was
painted black in 1943
during World War II. This
was done to camouflage the
building and prevent it
from being a target of
Japanese air raid bombings

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76 years ago, on the midnight of December 20, 1942, the
then city of Calcutta (now Kolkata) jolted up by the sound
of bomb blasts across the city as the World War II reached
its peak. The Imperial Japanese Army Air Force (IJAAF)
started bombing the city of joy for the first time that night.
India was a de-facto ally of the British Empire back then.
As the doom of the World War engulfed the globe, Calcutta
also got hit by the global war as the bombing from Japanese
aircraft damaged the city’s infrastructure and livelihood.

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13
The only person to possibly have witnessed the Japanese bombing of
Calcutta (Kolkata) during WWII were my paternal grandparents. I have
never seen my maternal grandparents thus never would know their version
of the history. My grandmother was a born storyteller, a prolific writer she
had the finesse to tell stories and she told it in a way which would surely
attract anyone especially a 10-year-old boy which was me. My grandfather
was on the other had a man of few words and would be busy in his own
world writing diaries and listening to radio something which he continued
to do even when cable television had arrived and continued until his death.

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Fortunately, none of the bombs fell anywhere near to Ballygunge but they
did elsewhere in the city. Since my grandmother had very less access to
open information which we now luckily have due to the advent of Internet
she for most relied on the newspaper to report on the bomb raids. As the
norm, during any war, the news reports are censored and often reported to
show less casualty or less damage to the home front so as to not spread
panic amongst the civilians. Instead more often they carried news of Allied
victories against such raids.

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Operation Creek (also known as Operation Longshanks) was a covert military
operation undertaken by Britain's Special Operations Executive in World War II on 9
March 1943. It involved a nighttime attack by members of the Calcutta Light Horse
and the Calcutta Scottish against a German merchant ship, the Ehrenfels, which had
been transmitting information to U-boats from Mormugao Harbour in neutral Portugal's
territory of Goa. The attack was successfully carried out, and the Ehrenfels and three
other Axis merchant ships were sunk, stopping the transmissions to the U-boats.

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The Battle of Keren (Italian: Battaglia di Cheren) took
place from 3 February to 27 March 1941. Keren was
attacked by the British during the East African
Campaign of the Second World War. A force of Italian
regular and colonial troops defended the position
against British troops (mostly from Sudan and British
India) and Free French forces. The town of Keren, in
the colony of Italian East Africa, was of tactical
importance to both sides. The road and railway
through Keren were the main routes to the colonial
capital of Italian Eritrea at Asmara and the Red Sea
port of Massawa, which surrendered to the British
after the battle.

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 Harbour Accident

Others died in industrial accidents - there was an

incredible explosion in Bombay harbour in 1944, when a
ship loaded with explosives and cotton caught alight,
blew warships to smithereens and made over 80,000
homeless.
Factory workers and dockworkers also suffered from
aerial bombardment - official figures suggest several
thousand deaths from Japanese bombs on India's eastern
coastline.
The men and women who kept the imperial war effort
going in South Asia did not write diaries and memoirs.
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 Conclusion

By doing this project I understood a dominating part of

India’s history and contribution during World War II. This
was the first project which enhanced that how we ignore
the forgotten colonial contribution. This project helps to
enlighten the major parts of history in India.

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 Acknowledgement

I would like to express my gratitude and thanks to

Debjani Dey, my History teacher for her time and
efforts to help me to do this project. I would also take
the opportunity to thank my family members and
friends.

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For doing this project I took help from

• Linkedin.com
• https://www.bbc.com
• Wikipedia
• https://indianvagabond.com

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