The birth pangs of Partition (of India and Pakistan) had already started, and there were instances of mass killings in the Hindu Muslim riots in and around Kolkata.
After the birth pangs of Partition were over, Maj Sathe's father was posted to Shilong, and then to Delhi where Maj Sathe had his education, and he continued to be a "Cantonment Kid" as the family moved to Jammu, Deolali, and finally to Pune.