Forgotten heroes of India's 1st army By: Nilanjana Sengupta Date: 2010-08-14 From Singapore, 3 Indians who were in Netaji's INA, our first National Army, talk about glory and subsequent neglect from a "corrupt, truncated" motherland In a small Udipi restaurant on Singapore's Serangoon Road, a group of octogenarians greet each other with "Jai Hind". They remember phone numbers with difficulty, but lucidly recall their INA days. Each of them carries copies of a certain certificate with pride. It is the only, slim testimonial to prove that they belonged to the first real national army of their homeland, about 3,000 km away. (From left) Girish Kothari, Kishore Bhattacharya and Bala A Chandran in Singapore Bala A Chandran, Girish Kothari and Kishore Bhattacharya were once members of the Indian National Army (INA), a band of revolutionary fighters that Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose created in 1943 from among Indian immigrants in Singapore and othe...