Battle of Chawinda and Phillora
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India had her 1st Armoured Division on the offensive in this area. Equipped with four Armoured Regiments, this Division faced opposition from the Pakistani 6th Armoured Division. Some of the fiercest tank battles were fought at Phillora and then at Chawinda under Lieutenant General Harbaksh Singh. General Dunn was given an assortment of troops, 1 Armoured division, 6 Mountain division, 14 division and 26 division. Whereas Pakistani force expected to oppose the Indian thrust comprised of 15 division, 6 armoured division and 4 Corps Artillery.
The battle is remembered as the biggest tank battle after World War Two after the devastating Battle of Asal Uttar. Pakistani troops fought desperately, suffering heavy casualties to gain time for a stiffer defense in the rearward areas. At the end of the fighting, India claimed more than 170 tanks destroyed, of which 42 were captured in the I Corps area (11 of them intact, 31 of them in destroyed or damaged condition). India's own losses in the area were 29 tanks destroyed and another 41 damaged, that were repaired after the war.
Strategically, however, the battle was a stalemate.
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