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{{short description|Indian Army Officer}}
{{more citations needed|date=July 2020}}

{{Infobox military person
| honorific_prefix = [[Brigadier]]
| name = Kailash Prasad Pande
| honorific_suffix = [[Maha Vir Chakra|MVC]]
| image =
| birth_date = 4 July 1925
| birth_place = [[Madhya Pradesh]], [[India]]
| death_date = 4 February 2010 (aged 84)
| death_place = [[Deolali]], [[Maharashtra]], [[India]]
| nickname = Tom Pande
| birth_name =
| allegiance = {{Flag|India}}
| branch = {{army|India}}
| serviceyears =
| rank = [[File:Brigadier_of_the_Indian_Army.svg|20px]] [[Brigadier]]
| servicenumber =
| unit = [[Regiment of Artillery]]
| commands = 61 Mountain Brigade<br>2 Mountain Brigade<br>56 Mountain Composite Regiment<br>145 Mountain Battery
| battles = [[Indo-Pakistani War of 1971]]<br>
[[Indo-Pakistani War of 1965]]
| awards = [[File:Maha_Vir_Chakra_ribbon.svg|35px]] [[Maha Vir Chakra]]<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://gallantryawards.gov.in/Awardee/kailas-prasad-pande|title=BRIG KAILAS PRASAD PANDE MAHA VIR CHAKRA|publisher=Indian Army, Govt of India official website}}</ref>
| spouse =
| signature =
| website =
| module =
}}

[[Brigadier]] '''Kailash Prasad Pande''', [[Maha Vir Chakra|MVC]] (10 Dec 1925 - 4 February 2010) was an officer in the [[Indian Army]], who served with the [[Regiment of Artillery]]. He was awarded the [[Maha Vir Chakra]], India's second highest award for his role in the [[Indo-Pakistani War of 1971]].<ref name="rediff">{{cite news|url=https://www.rediff.com/news/2006/dec/15war.htm|title=1971 war: 'Tom' Pande wept silently for his men|publisher=Rediff News}}</ref><ref name="KP">{{cite web|url=https://www.tribuneindia.com/news/features/brig-tom-pande-the-maha-vir-284906|title=Brig 'Tom' Pande, the Maha Vir|date=2021-07-18|access-date=2022-03-05}}</ref>

==Early life==
Brigadier Kailash Prasad Pande was born on 4 July 1925 in a prominent family with a strong military tradition, in the then [[Central Provinces]] (now [[Madhya Pradesh]]). He studied at Gwalior's Victoria College, now known as [[Maharani Laxmi Bai Govt. College Of Excellence]], where the former Prime Minister of India, Shri [[Atal Behari Vajpayee]] was his classmate.<ref name="rediff"/>

==Military career==
Kailash Prasad Pande was commissioned into the [[Gwalior State]] Forces on August 25, 1945. After the independence of India, the princely state's forces were amalgamated with the Indian Army and ‘Tom’ Pande joined 42 Field Regiment of the [[Regiment of Artillery]]. He served in 52 Mountain Regiment (Pack), where he raised 145 Mountain Battery (Pack). In 1964, Lieutenant Colonel Pande raised and also commanded [[56 Field Regiment (India)|56 Mountain Composite Regiment (Pack)]]. He had a two-year tenure at the [[Indian Military Academy]] as a Battalion Commander. In 1970, he was promoted to the rank of Brigadier and took command of 2 Mountain Artillery Brigade deployed in [[Arunachal Pradesh]].<ref name="KP"/>

During the [[Indo-Pakistani War of 1971]], Brigadier Kailash Prasad Pandey commanded the 61 Mountain Brigade, which was deployed in the Eastern sector. He planned his attacks meticulously and led the brigade in successfully taking a number of objectives through intense and heavy combat. Advancing rapidly and covering 40 miles in 72 hours, his brigade achieved a number of victories including [[Chandina Upazila|Chandina]], [[Daudkandi Upazila|Daudkhandi]] and Mynawati. At Mynawati, he forced the garrison to surrender and accepted the surrender of the garrison commander Brigadier Sheikh Mansoor Hussain Attif, Commander of 117 Infantry Brigade of the [[Pakistan Army]], along with 5,000 troops and 50 officers. In recognition of his achievements, and for his demonstration of [[leadership]] and [[bravery]] in the field, Brigadier Kailash Prasad Pande was awarded the [[Maha Vir Chakra]], [[India]]'s second highest [[Gallantry award|gallantry]] award.<ref>{{cite book|author=Darshan Khullar |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=CBK7DgAAQBAJ&dq=Kailash+Prasad+Pande+mvc&pg=PT127|title=Themes of Glory: Indian Artillery in War|publisher=Vij Books India Pvt Ltd|year= 2017|isbn=9789385563973|location=|pages=252}}</ref>

==Later life==
Brigadier Pande, superannuated in July 1979 and settled down in Bhopal, his hometown. After retirement, he was appointed as Director of [[Home Guard (India)|Home Guards]] by the Madhya Pradesh Government. He also became secretary of the Madhya Pradesh Rajya Sainik Board. He was made in-charge of the Red Cross Organization in [[Bhopal]] and was responsible for providing relief to the [[Bhopal disaster|Bhopal Gas Tragedy]] victims. He was also sent to [[Jaffna]], [[Sri Lanka]] as part of a Red Cross delegation in 1988.<ref name="KP"/>

Brigadier Kailash Prasad Pandey passed away on 4 February 2010 in [[Deolali]], [[Maharashtra]]. Major General Yash Pande is his son and a surgeon in the Indian Army.

General [[Deepak Kapoor]], the 22nd [[Chief of the Army Staff (India)|Chief of the Army Staff]] is his son-in-law.<ref name="KP"/>

==See also==
[[Indo-Pakistani War of 1971]]

==References==

{{reflist}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pandey, Kailash Prasad}}
[[Category:Recipients of the Maha Vir Chakra]]
[[Category:Indian Army officers]]
[[Category:1925 births]]
[[Category:2010 deaths]]

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{{India-bio-stub}}

Kailas Prasad Pandey - Revision history

Bot at 22:49, 7 April 2022