Patel read it over two evenings, his red pencil marking questions and observations.
When he finished, he looked at Vikram with an expression that combined approval with concern.
"This is expensive."
"Yes, sir. Approximately ten percent of GDP over the first five years, declining to seven percent thereafter."
"Nehru will resist. He wants to spend on developnt, not defense."
"Developnt without defense is building a house without walls, sir. China will consolidate within two years.
When that happens, we'll face a major military power on our northern border — a power with ten tis our population and no democratic constraints on military spending."
"You're certain about China?"
"As certain as I've been about anything, sir."
Patel was quiet for a long mont. "I'll support the plan. But Nehru will need to be persuaded.
And the way to persuade Nehru is not through military argunts — he distrusts military thinking.
The way to persuade him is through strategic argunts — showing him that military strength is the foundation of the diplomatic independence he values."
Patel understands Nehru better than anyone, Vikram thought.
He knows how to translate military necessity into language that Nehru's idealistic mind can accept.
"How do we fra it, sir?"
"India's non-alignnt. Nehru's most cherished foreign policy concept — the idea that India doesn't belong to either the Arican or Soviet bloc, that India charts its own course.
But non-alignnt is only credible if India is strong enough to say no to both superpowers.
A weak India isn't non-aligned — it's irrelevant. A strong India — militarily strong, economically strong, technologically strong — can genuinely choose its own path."
"That's... brilliant."
"I've been in politics for forty years, Rathore. I've learned a few things about persuasion." The ghost of a smile.
"Present the defense plan to Nehru as the military foundation of non-alignnt. The shield that allows India to stand independent.
He'll listen to that argunt — because it's his argunt, refrad."
Kao arrived in Delhi on December 15th, having spent two months in Kashmir overseeing the continued military deploynt and intelligence operations.
He looked thinner, harder, and more confident — the mountain missions had stripped away whatever softness remained from his police career, leaving behind the pure, tempered steel of a professional intelligence officer.
His briefing covered three areas.
"First: Kashmir is stable. The border is secured. Abdullah's governnt is functioning.
The Poonch incursion was the last significant military probe — Pakistan has shifted to diplomatic pressure and propaganda, which are annoying but not threatening."
"Second: Blackwood. He's been recalled to London permanently. MI6 has concluded that whatever intelligence capability India possesses is too well-concealed to penetrate through conventional ans.
They're shifting to a different approach — cultivating long-term sources within the Indian governnt and military who might provide access over ti."
"Can we identify and neutralize those recruitnt attempts?"
"Already working on it. I've established a counterintelligence section within RAW specifically for this purpose.
We're monitoring all known and suspected MI6 contacts in India."
"And third?"
Kao's expression shifted — becoming more grave, more focused. "China."
He opened a briefcase and extracted a folder. "Our networks in the overseas Chinese community have produced the first significant intelligence.
The Communist forces have effectively won the civil war. Chiang Kai-shek's governnt is preparing to evacuate to Taiwan.
Mao will declare the People's Republic within the next eighteen to twenty-four months."
"Expected," Vikram said. "What else?"
"What's not expected — at least not by anyone outside our organization — is the speed of Chinese military planning for Tibet.
We've obtained a docunt — partial, translated from Mandarin by our asset in the Calcutta Chinese community — that outlines PLA strategic planning for what they call 'the peaceful liberation of Tibet.' The target date appears to be 1950 — possibly as early as the spring."
Vikram's blood went cold. "1950. That's two years away."
"Less than two years. And when China moves on Tibet, Indian forces will be facing the PLA across the Himalayas. Not in five years. Not in ten years. In two years."
"Does the military modernization tiline account for this?"
"Not adequately. The current plan assus five years for full modernization. We may have two."
Vikram stared at the intelligence report, feeling the familiar weight of strategic urgency pressing down on him.
Two years. Two years to modernize an army, build a defense industry, develop nuclear capability, transform the economy, and prepare for a confrontation with the world's most populous nation.
In the original tiline, India had thirteen years from independence to the 1962 war — and it still wasn't ready. Lost badly. Was humiliated.
This ti, we have less ti but more awareness. We know what's coming. We can prepare.
But the preparation needs to accelerate. Everything needs to accelerate.
"Kao," Vikram said, "I want a comprehensive intelligence assessnt of Chinese military capabilities — current and projected — on my desk within two weeks.
Include force structure, equipnt, logistics, command organization, and — most importantly — their assessnt of India."
"Their assessnt of us?"
"What does Beijing think about India? Do they see us as a threat? A rival? An irrelevance? Understanding their perception is the key to shaping their behavior."
"I'll have it done."
"And Kao — the Tibet question. If China invades Tibet, what are our options?"
Kao was quiet for a mont. "That depends on what we're willing to risk.
Supporting Tibetan independence openly ans confrontation with China.
Doing nothing ans accepting a Chinese military presence on our border."
"There's a third option. Covert support for Tibetan resistance — arms, training, intelligence — while maintaining diplomatic ambiguity.
We don't openly challenge China, but we ensure that Tibet remains a problem for them.
A bleeding wound that drains resources and attention."
"That's a long-term commitnt. And it carries the risk of exposure."
"Every strategic choice carries risks. The question is which risks are acceptable."
Vikram paused. "Begin planning. Quietly. I'll discuss it with Patel."
Kao nodded and left, carrying with him the weight of a new mission that would test RAW's capabilities in ways that no previous operation had.
That night, Vikram sat alone in his office, the Delhi winter pressing against the windows, and contemplated the road ahead.
Six months since independence. Bengal secured. Kashmir secured. Hyderabad integrated. The economy transforming. The nuclear program launched. RAW growing.
But the greatest challenges were still ahead.
China. Pakistan's continued hostility. The military modernization that India desperately needed. The nuclear weapons capability that would take years to develop. The economic transformation that was still in its earliest stages.
And underlying all of it — the relentless, ticking clock of Patel's health.
Dr. Chatterjee's latest report was cautiously optimistic — the dication was working, the diet was helping, the cardiac indicators had stabilized. But "stabilized" was not "cured."
Patel was seventy-two years old, and the years of stress and overwork had taken a toll that no dicine could fully reverse.
I need him alive for at least another decade, Vikram thought. Ten more years of the Iron Man. Ten more years of the partnership between Patel and Nehru that gives India both steel and vision.
Without Patel, Nehru governs alone. And Nehru alone — brilliant, idealistic, well-intentioned Nehru — will make mistakes that a balanced partnership would prevent.
Keep Patel alive. Keep the partnership functioning. Keep India on the path.
He opened his notebook and wrote a single line:
The next two years will determine India's fate for the next century. China is coming. We must be ready.
Then he closed the notebook, turned off the lamp, and walked out into the Delhi night.
The stars were clear above Old Delhi — the sa stars that had watched over this city for a thousand years, through empires and invasions and transformations beyond counting.
One more transformation was underway.
And this ti, the architect was determined to get it right.
Give your Powerstones
Can we reach 1000 Power Stones this week
Read 10 Chapters Ahead!
Support the story and get early access here:
ko-fi/dd444
To be continued..
[END OF CHAPTER 61]
User Comments
0 comments from readers