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Background: Visnews cameraman Bill Woodman was on the outskirts of Jessore on Thursday (9 December) filming the entry of Indian troops into Jessore. The troops were loudly cheered as liberators, by the Inhabitants, an they moved into the town led the way. Arms and supplies left by the retreating Pakistani Army were frequently seen at the roadside. This coverage was telerecorded from one of Saturday's (11 December) Eurovision circuits, having been injected for Visnews from RAI television for the sake of speed.

SYNOPSIS: Indian Army trucks pull 25-pounder and other field guns along the road to Jessore last Thursday. The Indians were moving in pursuit of a rapidly retreating Pakistan Army.

Spearheading he Indian ground attack were several squadrons of Russian-built tanks. At this stage there were few engagements....resistance was very slight as the Pakistani soldiers apparently found themselves harrassed by Mukti Bahini units and local inhabitants as they gave up positions on the outskirts of Jessore.

So swift had been the Indian advance that officers had been concerned that supply lines from areas such as Calcutta might not be able to keep pace. Their fears were to some extent dispelled by large finds of rice, tinned foods and ammunition, abandoned by the Pakistan Army.

A Visnews cameraman on the outskirts of Jessore filmed the Indian troops entering the town. They were treated as liberators, and loudly cheered by the remaining inhabitants. While the troops were moving through the town, some Pakistani soldiers were attempting a host-lived retreat South along the road towards Khulna. At this stage the Indian Army had secured mastery in the air, and air support was not as frequently required for the ground units. However, sporadic Pakistani mortar attacks still made extreme caution necessary.

A constant convoy of Indian Army trucks headed deeper into East Pakistan bearing support troops. Along some of the roads the soldiers came across abandoned weapons and ammunition of varying sizes and type.