1965. India was at war with Pakistan.
It was a pitch-dark, silent night. The streets were empty, and electricity was cut off.
Jayachandran, then a lower primary student, remembers sirens blaring. To date, that ‘boy’, now better known as ‘CICC’ Jayachandran wonders if a bomb had struck Kochi back then – a popular urban legend in town.
‘Do you remember when Pakistan dropped a bomb into Kochi backwaters?’ Jayachandran, who runs the famous CICC Book Stall, recently posted on Facebook.
“Many people replied. Some say the incident happened, and some say it couldn’t have happened,” he says.
There are no public records of a bomb attack on Kochi in 1965, he admits. “However, I believe that something did happen. It may not have been a bomb, and it may not have been Pakistan that was behind it. But I remember the panic of the day, the loud sirens... the presence of officers across the city,” Jayachandran says.
The question is about an old speculation that a projectile landed in a marsh on Willingdon Island, a strategic location that’s home to the naval command, the Kochi port and the old airport.
Stories about this ‘bomb’ spread among many soon after, says Jayachandran. Writer N S Madhavan, he adds, mentions this in his book Lanthenbetheriyile Luthiniyakal (Litanies of the Dutch Battery), which won the Kerala Sahitya Akademi Award.
Now, once again, the ‘mystery bomb’ has become a topic of discussion. Most people point out the impossible parameters — the range limitations of weaponry those days, the distance between Pakistan and Kochi, and the lack of historical records.
Writer M K Sanoo clearly remembers all the wars of his lifetime. “I, too, have heard that a bomb did fall in Kochi during the 1965 war and that it failed to detonate,” says the 94-year-old literary critic. “But it’s just hearsay. I have not come across any details about it.”
M K Das, veteran journalist and author of Cochin: Fame and Fables, laughs at the question. “Well, there have been stories that a Japanese bomb fell in Kochi during World War II. And yes, many more stories about a bomb during the 1965 war. But there is absolutely no proof about either,” he says.
Former Kochi mayor and state convener of Intach K J Sohan remembers those days vividly. “It was indeed a scary time. Willingdon Island was a strategic location for us, for a society gripped in poverty. All the grains, including wheat, used to reach us through the port,” he says.
“Pakistan had the American-supplied Sabre aircraft, which had additional fuel tanks. That made many fear a possible attack, even so far out in our Kerala.”
Amid the repeated blackouts and sirens, one day, Sohan recalls, the news spread of a bomb hitting Willingdon Island. “Everyone got scared, and many families decided to flee. Many packed up and rushed to the railway station,” he says.
However, Sohan explains, it was just a scare. “No military officials confirmed it. There is no proof or record of it. Some say something might have fallen off one of our own ships or aircraft,” he adds.
Well, be it myth, legend or tales passed through generations, the ‘bomb story’ definitely is an interesting tidbit. “Every time there is a conflict, old-timers like us recall the sirens and the bomb (that wasn’t there) as we sip a cup of hot tea. Now, you folks continue the tradition,” Sohan smiles.