and Indian Independence 4–5
Indians in 46–8 (wartime), 316, 317–19 (postwar)
Labour Party 317
see also Amery, Leo; Churchill, Winston; Cripps, Sir Stafford; India Office; London; War Office
Britannia, SS 47
British Army
accommodation 169, 170
arrival in India 142, 143, 144–6, 147, 152–3
and bearers 148—9
casualties 68, 103
Cheshire Regiment 73
14th Army 245–6, 249, 259, 260
Highland Light Infantry 67
officers and their men 310–12, 318
Poles 289
and prostitutes 239–40
Queen’s Own Cameron Highlanders 65, 70
and Quit India movement 189–90, 191, 193–4
supplies and suppliers 167–9
as threat to women 149–51
West Yorkshire Regiment 67
brothels 144, 239, 240, 241, 242, 243, 278
Bukhari, Z. A. 184
Bukht, Mr (Lascar Welfare Officer) 48
Burma 98–9, 158, 189
deforestation 84
Indian communities 103, 117
Japanese invasion (1942) 93, 94, 98, 99, 100, 117
reconquest 249, 259, 295–6
refugees 98, 99–106, 107, 119–20, 122, 133, 176
and road building 158–61, see also Ledo Road
Burma Indian Association 106
Burma Road 99
Burma Shell (company) 85
bustees (shanty towns) 87–8, 108
Calcutta 82, 86, 88, 143, 259
air-raid precautions 114
Belur Salvage Yard 307
brothels and prostitution 239, 242–3, 278
Corpse Disposal Squad 206
drug smugglers 278
famine 205–7, 214, 221
fear of Japanese invasion 92, 94, 98, 114
hotels 156, 169–70, 207
Indian Seamen’s Federation 46–7
jeep theft 274–5
jute factories 174
racial segregation 267–8
requisitioning 163, 165, 166
shooting of rickshaw driver 275–6, 277
survey (1944) 284–5
tea industries 158
venereal disease 149, 193–4, 240, 241, 254
cannabis see ganja
Cardiff 175, 318
caste system xiii, xiv, 56, 103, 214, 217, 230, 267, 312
and recruitment 25, 26, 27
casualties, Indian 49–50, 140
military see Indian Army
Cawnpore 87, 111
Cellular Jail, the 80, 81, 126, 127, 130
censorship 1, 36, 41–2, 186, 196, 204
Central Provinces 6, 40, 111, 128, 139, 163, 185, 192
Ceylon (Sri Lanka) 48, 97, 176, 270, 302
Chakraverti, M. B. 168
Chakulia air base, Bihar 162, 239
Chand, Bahadur Singh 318–19
Chand, Lal 19
Changi prisoner-of-war camp 112
Cheng Chee-Ching 265
Chiang Kai-shek 106, 107, 178, 260, 271
Chimur 192–3
Chin, Elsie 271
China/Chinese
and air-drops from India 163, 259
Delhi restaurants 155
and India 19, 106–7, 170
and Japan 10, 92, 99, 117, 119, 142
opium smuggling 278
troops 202, 270–72
see also Ledo Road
Chint Singh, Major 294–5
Chirhah, Neipezu-u 247
Chittagong 48, 94, 102, 116, 208, 269, 320
Chittoor 115
Choudhary, Savitri 46
Choudhary, Yousuf 50
Choudhury, Nalini 168
Churchill, Winston 85
attitude to India 51, 61, 135, 152, 213
authorises London Central Mosque 208
Axis cartoon of 234
and defence of Ceylon 97
and Linlithgow 6, 68, 191
and suppression of rebellion 191, 193
and victory at Keren 68
victory speech (1945) 302–3
CID see Criminal Investigation Department
cinema see films
City of Benares, SS: torpedoed 49–50
City of Manchester, SS 47
civil servants 12, see Indian Civil Service
Clan Alpine, SS 47
Clan Macbrayne, SS 49
Clan Rose, SS 49
Close, H. M.: A Pathan Company 310–11, 313
cloth shortages 204, 297–8
Cocanada, bombing of (1942) 97
Coimbatore 123
Cole, Major Brian: The Recruiting Handbook for the Rajputana Classes 26
Colville, John, Governor of Bombay 195
Comilla: General Hospital 256
Commonwealth Gates Trust xii
Commonwealth War Graves Commission 320
communism/communists 9, 13, 16, 41, 91, 138, 177, 178, 279, 286
Congress see Indian National Congress
Congress Socialist Party (CSP) 177, 184
Congress Working Committee see Indian National Congress
Conjeevaram 115
corruption 164, 228, 284–5, 295, 297
Coward, Noël 222
‘I Wonder What Happened to Him’ 222–3
Craig jute mill 165–6
Craik, Henry, Governor of Punjab 22, 54, 55
Crasta, John Baptist: Eaten by the Japanese 294, 306
Criminal Investigation Department (CID) 179, 182, 289
Cripps, Sir Stafford 132, 133, 317
Cripps Mission (1942) 132–4, 139, 140, 177, 196, 219
CSP see Congress Socialist Party
Cyprus 203, 236
Dacca Station 211
Daily Express 146
Dalhousie hill station 14
dalits (‘untouchables’) 16, 56, 57, 186
Dalmia, Ramakrishna 85, 166
Damodar River 206
Darling, Malcolm 56
At Freedom’s Door xi
Das, Gandhi 310
Das, Kamala 109
Datta, Madiman 100
decommissioning of war goods 307–8
Defence of India Act (1939) 11–12, 14, 60, 87, 134, 162, 193, 194, 270
deforestation 84–5
Dehra Dun 2
Indian Military Academy 18, 42
prisoner-of-war camp 14, 78
St Dunstan’s 315
Delhi/New Delhi 59, 86, 88, 140, 155
brothels 239
Duke of Gloucester’s visit (1942) 173
hotels and clubs 89, 155
Purana Qila prisoner-of-war camp 112
Red Fort ix, x
Victory Parade (1945) 302
war memorial 320
demobilisation 298, see also Indian Army
demolition/’denial’ policies 94, 95–7, 164, 165
Desai, Ghulabhai 108
Des Chene, Mary 32
Devaux, Douglas 147–8
Dhatt, Rajinder Singh 19, 74, 227, 310, 318
Dhillon, Gurbaksh Singh ix–x, 304–5
Dimapur 104, 160, 245
Dinjan 104
displaced persons see refugees
District Magistrates 13, 41, 51, 52, 53, 58, 114, 162, 164–5, 277, 298
District Welfare Boards 37–8
Ditta, Allah 16
Dologorodoc, Mount 63–4
Dongre, Inspector A. B. 286
Downfall of Hitler, The (play) 222
Downing, Veronica 101, 154–5
drugs trade 278—9
dukha 32
Dutt, B. C. 314
Dytrych, Hanker 290
East India Railway 200
economy, Indian 89–90, 138–9, 177
Egypt 19, 71–2, 84, 150, 203, 230, 235
El Alamein xiii, 76, 176
Empire Indus, SS 287
ENSA 222
Evening Standard 78
famines xiv, 24, 167, 200–2, 248
see also Bengal
fascism 9, 10, 11, 91, 137, 217
Fauji Akbar (propaganda paper) 224
Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry 106, 184
Ffrench, John 27–8, 35, 74, 227–8, 311–12
film industry/films 86, 145, 156–7, 222, 223, 234, 238–9,
anti-prostitution propaganda 240
fines, collective 192
Finney, Philip 15
Fischer, Louis 146
Flanagan, Richard: The Narrow Road to the Deep North v
floggings 194–5
Foltz, Tom 144
food shortages see Bengal famine; famines
Force Trout 21
Forster, E. M.: Passage to India 55
Fort Stikine, SS 287
Free India Legion 77
Freud, Sigmund 256
Friends Ambulance Unity 253, 297
Frusci, General Luigi 67
Fürer-Haimendorf, Christoph von 14–15
Gandharva, Jhalakman 32
Gandhi, Mohandas (‘Mahatma’) 23
and Aruna and Asaf Ali 59, 60, 196, 303, 306, 307
attitudes towards xi, 85, 139–40, 177, 181–2, 183, 185, 188, 189, 219
and Cripps (1942) 133
critical of US racial problems 152, 268—9
and discrimination 56, 107
foresees Bengal famine 95, 96, 167, 215
on Hiroshima and Nagasaki bombing (1945) 301
and imminent Japanese invasion 108–9, 112, 116
imprisonment 180–81, 183, 215, 282—3
and Indian self-rule/Independence xv, 107, 147, 177–8, 188, 215
and international press coverage 146
and Jinnah 135, 198
and Linlithgow 6, 10, 84, 135
meets Chiang Kai-shek (1942) 106, 107, 178
meets Wavell 301
and O’Dwyer murder 45
and opening of Vizagapatam shipyard (1941) 82
opposes foreign troops in India (1942) 147, 150–51
and poverty and malnourishment (1930s) 56
programme of non-violence 57–8, 85, 138, 147, 196
on trade with US army 168—9
on the war 98
ganja (cannabis) 162, 278–9
Ganpat, Dewoo 192
Garhmukteshwar: mela (1941) 88–9
Garo porters 102, 262
George VI 220
Germans 76–7, 82, 90
internment and investigation of 12–13, 14, 15
prisoners of war 78, 292
radio services 40–41
U-boats 49, 83–4
see also Hitler, Adolf
Ghafur (a bootmaker) 68
Ghatak, Ritwik 222
Ghulam (a butcher) 16
Gian Singh: Memories of Friends and Foes 246, 255, 270–71, 311
Gielgud, John 222
Gill, Brigadier Parampal 302
Gloucester, Prince Henry, Duke of 173
Gollancz, Victor 194
Gorakhpur 53, 58
Government of India
allows American pin-ups 157
and Andaman Islands 125
angered by American propaganda 152
backs formation of Women’s Auxiliary Corps (India) 154
blamed for Bengal famine 300
builds Polish refugee camp 125
and Chinese training camp 271
compensation scheme 288
and death of Eglind Roze 275
defends the Raj 1
and evacuation policy 120
fear of Japanese invasion 98
fear of Russian invasion 20–21
imprisonment of INA officers (1946) ix
propaganda 40
recruiting handbooks 26–7
wartime profits 138–9
and women miners 261
Govindasamy, Mr 119
Grady, Henry 166–7
Greece 90, 236
Greek refugees 123
Greenough, Paul: Prosperity and Misery in Modern Bengal 241–2
Gujarat 185
Gurkhas 29–33, 77, 148, 228, 229, 303, 311, 313, 315
Gurumurthy, Dr Krishnan 104–5, 119–20
Gurungs 29, 228–9
Habibs 308
Haider, Ghulum 67
Haile Selassie 68
Hallet (naval officer) 116
Haq, Fazlul 106–7, 242
Harnarain Singh 34, 39
Harrer, Heinrich 13
havildars (Indian NCOs) 74
‘Haw-Haw, Lord’ (William Joyce) 45
Hellbird Herald (news-sheet) 148
Herbert, John, Governor of Bengal 95, 96, 206, 208, 209, 211
Hillenbrand, Martin 120
Hindu Mahasabha 198
Hindus 9, 57
divisions with Muslims 135–6, 186, 308
Hindustan Aircraft Factory 170–71
Hindustan Insurance Society 94
Hindustani 73, 74, 75
Hirachand, Walchand 83, 85, 109, 110, 112–13, 166, 167, 170, 184, 186, 307–8
Hiroshima, bombing of (1945) 200, 301
Hitavada, The (Nagpur newspaper) 279
Hitler, Adolf 9, 11, 16, 41, 82, 90
Mein Kampf 42
Hong Kong 3, 21, 93, 94, 116, 117
Stanley Road Jail 294
Hope, Arthur, Governor of Madras 115, 150, 177
hospitals xiii, 18, 103–4, 155, 193–4, 215, 235, 245, 250–53, 254, 256, 273
hotels 89, 145, 156, 169–70, 207, 272
Hsu Kee Pao 265–6
Hulbert, Kenneth 202, 214
‘Hump, the’ 163, 259
Hussein, Jemadar Ghulam 311–12
Hyderabad 138
Hyderabad, Nizam of 7, 14
IA see Indian Army
IAMC see Indian Army Medical Corps
ICS see Indian Civil Service
IIL see Indian Independence League
illegitimate babies 238, 243
Imphal 160–61
1944 campaign 218, 245–9 282
INA see Indian National Army
Independence xi, xii, xiv, 4, 5, 57, 106, 140, 146, 177, 180, 226, 308, 314, 316, 319, 320; see also Menon, Krishna; Quit India movement
India League (London) 175, 176
India Office 153, 194, 195, 292
Indian Army (IA) 18–19, 20, 21–2, 118
Baluch Regiment 28, 67
and Bengal famine 204
British respect for 318
in Burma 99, 104
casualties 65, 67, 68, 246, 310–12
Central India Horse 67, 127
communication and language 73–5, 318
cooks 231
demobilisation xi, 226–7, 310, 313–14
deserters 118–19, 291–2
disabled soldiers 315–16
equipment and transport 21
hospitals 215
illness and health care 249, 250, 253–4
and Independence 226–7, 314
at Keren (1941) 62–8, 69–70, 230–31
letters home 36–7, 38–9, 42–3, 187, 188–9, 234
marriages and affairs 236–8
medals awarded 43, 69–71
in the Middle East 18, 21, 34, 35, 39, 62, 63, 76, 84, 156, 157, 187, 224
mutiny 231
non-combatants and camp followers 204–5, 230–32
in North and East Africa 18, 21, 34, 35, 62, 68–9, 71, 73, 76, 176, 187
officers 42, 71, 72–3, 231, 236, 311–13
pay 76, 188, 204, 220, 231, 236
pensions 230, 316
and propaganda 187–8, 223–4
psychiatry 255–8
and Quit India movement 186, 188–91
racial discrimination 71–3, 75
Rajputana Rifles 21, 63–8, 76, 236
Royal Bombay Sappers and Miners 36
split into national armies (1947) 309
supplies/suppliers
to 84, 167–9, 224–6
training 200, 231
venereal disease 239, 240
welfare efforts 215, 224–6
and women 234–8
in World War One 19
see also Gurkhas; prisoners of war; recruitment
Indian Army Medical Corps (IAMC) 230, 235
Indian Civil Service (ICS) 2
British men 55–6, 283–4; see also Brayne, Frank; Macdonald, Ian
and Defence of India Act 12
entertained by Lutheran missionaries 13
and German radio broadcasts 40–41
and Indian nationalism 5, 11
leave 98, 283
linguistic skills 74
and moving of prisoners from Andamans 126–7
and rebellion 185–6
resignations over Bengal famine 210–11
as source of information for villagers 41
and War Fund 54
Indian Comforts Fund 48
Indian Independence League (IIL) 117, 118, 216, 217
Indian Information (propaganda paper) 224
Indian Movietone News 223
Indian National Army (INA) 118, 138
and Bose as leader 118, 216–18, 219, 304
and end of war 304, 305, 310, 314
and Indian National Congress x, 219, 304
joined by Indian Army soldiers 118–19, 291–2, 305
Rani of Jhansi Regiment 217, 273
recruitment of women 217
Subhas Brigade 218
trial and release of officers (1946) ix–x, xi, 108, 217, 304–5
Indian National Congress (INC; Congress)
and beginning of war 8–9, 10–11, 134, 138
and Burmese refugees 105
and civil defence 108, 109
and collection of war funds 54
Congress Working Committee 45, 82, 133, 147, 177, 178–80, 198
counter-propaganda 41
demands for Independence 57, 177
and failure of Cripps Mission 134, 139–40
and Gandhi 58
imprisonment of leaders 139–40, 177, 178–80, 303
and Indian National Army x, 219, 304
and maharajas (in 1930s) 8
and Muslims and Muslim League 135–6, 308
resignation of ministries (1939) 6, 135–6
and underground activists 183, 184–6
youth wings 9
see also Ali, Asaf; Azad, Abdul Kalam; Nehru, Jawaharlal
Indian News Parade 223
Indian People’s Theatre Association (IPTA) 221–2
Indian Red Cross Society 253
Indian Tea Association 105, 161, 253, 261
‘Indianisation policy’ 4–5
Indore 7
industry see trade and industry
intelligence agents, Indian 15, 16
see also Criminal Investigation Department
International Women’s league 194
internment of foreigners 12–14
Ipi, Faqir of 20
IPTA see Indian People’s Theatre Association
Ispahani, Mirza Ahmad 164
Ispahanis 308
Italians 21, 35, 42
and battle for Keren 62–8
Centro Militare (India) 77–8
internment in India 12–13, 15