Photos: Army memorial ceremony for Field Marshal Sam Manekshaw

Talk about delayed reaction. A full two weeks after he passed away, and a lot of criticism to boot, the government today finally gave India's best loved soldier a memorial send-off worthy of his stature. Obviously embarrassed about the ridiculously low-profile attendance at the Wellington funeral, the three service chiefs, defence minister and top brass of the Army were out in full force to pay homage. A sober and well-organised ceremony. Those who spoke included the Defence Minister AK Antony (who called Manekshaw "the greatest soldier India has ever produced"), Chief of Army Staff Gen Deepak Kapoor, Lt Gen Depinder Singh (formerly Military Asst to Manekshaw), Lt Gen JK Sinha, Western Commander Lt Gen Tej Sapru and a couple of senior Gorkha officers.

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