36-532: The Sikkim Scouts is a regiment of the Indian Army based in and recruited from the state of Sikkim . Raised in 2013 and made operational in 2015, it is the newest Indian Army regiment. The regiment was formed along the lines of the Ladakh Scouts and Arunachal Scouts , as it is similarly recruited from a mountainous border area and is dedicated to border defence and mountain warfare . Sikkim Scouts
72-535: A 222 km (138 miles) border. China did not clearly recognize Sikkim as an Indian state until the 2000s, and continues to lay claim to what India refers to as the northernmost "Finger Area" of Sikkim. The Sino-Indian War of 1962 saw some fighting on the Sikkimese border and from 1965 to 1967, Indian and Chinese forces clashed on the border, notably during the 1967 Chola incident . More recently, there were small incursions and skirmishes around 2008. Several units of
108-547: A fatal UMG burst on his forehead. Inspired by his spontaneous valour, the KIRANTIS struck like lightning upon the enemy until not a single one was left standing. For this act of exceptional bravery, Captain Manoj Kumar Pandey was posthumously awarded the highest gallantry award the ‘PARAM VIR CHAKRA’. Apart from Captain Manoj Kumar Pandey , 13 other braves made the supreme sacrifice and immortalized themselves in
144-504: A foot hold on the other bank. The Battalion was part of the deadliest thrust of 23 Infantry Division and 4 Corps operations and fulfilled all tasks allotted in ample manner. During the entire operations the first inflicted heavy casualty on the enemy including 33 killed and one wounded. The Battalion earned One Vir Chakra, two Sena Medals, two Mentioned in Dispatches & one Vishisth Seva Medal for excellent operational performance. After
180-625: A parent squadron (designated by an (I) in their name). The suffix 'UH' stands for Utility Helicopter Flights and 'ALH-WSI' stands for Advanced Light Helicopter - Weapon Systems Integrated . 11th Gorkha Rifles The 11th Gorkha Rifles is a Gorkha regiment of the Indian Army that was re-raised after independence. The regiment consists of primarily the Kirant Tribes Rai , Limbu , Yakkha , Sunuwar of Eastern Nepal , Darjeeling , Kalimpong , Dooars of West Bengal , Sikkim and other parts of Northeast India . Though it
216-570: A successful Siachen tenure, the Bn was concentrated at Nurla for de-induction. The advance party had already reached Pune and the ECC clothing issued to the unit had been deposited. Bulk of the weapons had been handed over to the relieving unit. It was in these circumstances that on 08 May 99, the battalion became the first unit to be inducted in the Kargil war. It was only on 02 Jun 99 that Col Lalit Rai, took over
252-457: Is a military role assigned to units and/or their equipment. It involves watching an area to see what changes (surveillance) for the purpose of enemy field artillery acquisition, then the acquisition of targets based on that information, and example of their equipment include Counter-battery radar (CoBRa) and Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) (see also Mobile Artillery Monitoring Battlefield Asset (MAMBA) ). The list of army air defence regiments
288-462: Is affiliated with the 11th Gorkha Rifles , and uses its insignia and flag, with the addition of the words ‘Sikkim Scouts’. Sikkim became a state of India in 1975, after having been a British and then Indian protectorate for nearly a century. Even as a protectorate, Indian troops were stationed in Sikkim, because of the area's important role as a buffer zone against China , with which it shares
324-783: Is as follows: The corps was formed from the Sapper and Miner Groups of each of the erstwhile presidencies of British India. The Corps consists of three groups of combat engineers, namely the Madras Sappers , the Bengal Sappers and the Bombay Sappers . The list of Engineer regiments is as follows: The Army Aviation Corps units are designated as 'Squadrons'. Each squadron generally consists of two Reconnaissance (Recce) and Observation Flights. R & O Flights might be part of squadrons or operate independently and do not have
360-605: Is considered to be the youngest of the Gorkha regiments its lineage is as long as those of the 7th Gurkha Rifles and 10th Gurkha Rifles . The regiment has participated in all major military operations India has undertaken since independence including in the Indo-Pakistani War of 1947 , Operation Polo in 1948, the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965 , the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971 , and the Kargil War in 1999. Units of
396-701: The Arunachal Scouts in 2010, while other Himalayan states have dedicated border security battalions in regular regiments such as the Kumaon Regiment .) The ministry and the Indian Army supported Chamling's proposal, as it was in line with India's "sons of soil" policy to bolster her defence units by integrating locals into them, and on 6 December 2012, the proposal was approved by the Cabinet Committee on Security . Officials stated at
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#1732771974091432-608: The British Army . A referendum was held among the soldiers of the four regiments (2nd, 6th, 7th and 10th Gurkhas) that would transfer to the British as to whether they wished to join the British Army, as the decision to do so was made entirely voluntary. Of the four regiments, one battalion (4th battalion, 2nd Gurkhas) opted en masse to join the Indian Army and became part of the 8 Gorkha Rifles as their 5th battalion. In
468-539: The Battalion led by C Coy under Maj NS Shekhawat cleared Mudafarganj town in a lightning day light attack and secured two important bridges. The Kirantis showed utmost bravery and dedication when on 07 Dec 1971, Pak Army launched two Counter Attacks to siege the bridge and they were beaten back not once but twice. Maj BKD Badgel continued to fight and organise the defences even after being shot through his arm. For this dare devil act and unflinching leadership, Maj BKD Badgel
504-709: The Indian Army after independence, it was decided not to retain the honours and traditions of the first 11th Gurkha Rifles of the British Indian Army. Today, the regiment has a total of six regular and one Territorial Army battalions. From the jungles of Nagaland, the Bnz moved to New Misamari in Jan 1971 under the orbatz of 301 Mtn Bde/ 23 Mtn Div. The Bn stayed at Misamari only for a short duration of three months before moving to Durgapur and Burdwan districts of West Bengal for IS duties for conduct of state elections. The Bn
540-708: The Indian Army and Indo-Tibetan Border Police are stationed in Sikkim as of 2014. Historically, these troops have been drawn from other parts of India, and not from the local population. Pawan Kumar Chamling , Chief Minister of Sikkim from the Sikkim Democratic Front , requested of the Ministry of Defence that the Sikkim Scouts regiment be formed, to provide positions for young men in Sikkim and since all other Himalayan border states had similar forces. (The Ladakh Scouts were formed in 1963, and
576-626: The Indian Army will continue to pass through Sikkim on a temporary (2–3 year) basis, as part of their rotation between different bases in India, the Sikkim Scouts is permanently stationed on the border, and its members will spend nearly their entire career in the state. List of regiments of the Indian Army This article lists the regiments of the Indian Army , including the various corps of supporting arms and services. The following old lists in this section have been replaced by
612-581: The Regiment of Artillery are listed below: The following units, designated as "Missile Group", are equipped with nuclear capable ballistic missiles like Prithvi and Agni . They operate under the Strategic Forces Command . Units of the Regiment of Artillery that have equipment other than weapons are listed below. These units mainly have Surveillance and Target Acquisition (SATA) equipment, Surveillance and target acquisition
648-588: The annals of history. Col Lalit Rai, Hav Bhim Bahadur Dewan and Lance Naik Gyanendra Rai were awarded the Vir Chakra. In recognition of its good work, the battalion was awarded the Chief of the Army Staff Unit Citation, 2nd time within the decade. The battalion was bestowed with Battle Honour, 'BATALIK' and theatre honour, 'KARGIL'. Also, 'The First' entered the exclusive club of those rarest of
684-406: The event, large numbers of men from the 7th and 10th Gurkhas, which recruited predominantly from eastern Nepal, opted to join the Indian Army as against the British Army to whom their regiments were allotted. So, in order to retain a contingent from this area of Nepal, the Indian Army made the decision to re-raise the 11 Gorkha Rifles. 11 Gorkha Rifles was officially re-raised on 1 January 1948, with
720-524: The first ever joint Air Force and Army operation since Independence and it greatly expedited the termination of hostilities. The aim of the operation was to facilitate rapid movement of Indian troops over Meghna, as the existing bridges were destroyed by Pak forces to delay move of 4 Corps. The Bn took up a daring task of establishing a bridge head across Meghna river in area Godnail so as to facilitate their infiltration up to Jalkhundi. Capt RV Ram yet again lead A Company on assault craft and in no time established
756-476: The liberation of Bangladesh, the Bn returned to Misamari in Mar 1972 and stayed uptill 16 Aug 72 before finally moving to Dalhousie. During the Kargil War in 1999, the 1st battalion (1/11 GR) saw extensive action. Commanded by Colonel Lalit Rai , it was tasked with the capture of several strategic peaks in the Kargil region. The crowning moment of paltan's history came during the 1999 Indo Pak Kargil conflict. After
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#1732771974091792-516: The popularity of tattoos among Sikkimese men, many candidates had to be rejected; the Ministry of Defence had issued a policy banning tattoos (other than religious symbols and names) for new recruits to the Indian military in 2011. The regiment was presented with a flag, and formally raised, by Army Vice Chief S. K. Singh at Lucknow on 24 May 2013. At the time, there were 319 Sikkimese recruits in
828-563: The present list provided in the subsequent sections: In the Regiment of Artillery the battalion-sized units are referred to as regiments, a point of confusion on occasion. These units are equipped and named based on their type of equipment. There are two types of units. The majority are regiments that have weapons as their equipment, such as missiles, rockets, field guns, medium guns or mortars. The second type of regiment are those that have mission support equipment, such as surveillance equipments and weapon locating radars. Weapon-equipped units of
864-650: The rare units of the Indian Army to have won both the ‘Param Vir Chakra’ and the ‘Ashok Chakra’ thus earning the coveted title of being 'The Bravest of the Brave'. Captain Manoj Kumar Pandey was a young officer in 1/11 GR, who was posthumously awarded the Param Vir Chakra (PVC), India's highest gallantry award, for his actions in Batalik sector. Others: In addition, the Sikkim Scouts regiment, which
900-538: The regiment have also deployed abroad on UN missions. The 11th Gurkha Rifles was raised as an ad hoc unit in 1918 with troops and officers being drawn from the various Gurkha regiments. The regiment, consisting of four battalions, saw service in both Palestine and Mesopotamia at the end of the First World War , as well as during the Third Afghan War in 1919, before being disbanded in 1922 and
936-492: The regiment, and a cadre from Gorkha regiments assembled to train the recruits. The process of recruiting and training the regiment was completed in mid-2015. The regiment was initially planned as one battalion . Its future expansion is limited by the small size of the population from which it recruits. The first battalion's strength planned strength is 934, comprising 28 commissioned officers , 44 junior commissioned officers and 862 jawans ( other ranks ). A second battalion
972-462: The regimental centres at Palampur and Santa Cruz , Mumbai . The regimental centre was subsequently shifted to Jalapahar in Darjeeling, and then moved to Clement Town, Dehradun for a brief period, and finally to Lucknow where it was firmly established. The regiment was raised predominantly with the manpower from the non-optees of the 7th and 10th Gurkha Rifles. As the regiment was raised by
1008-481: The reins of the paltan. Not to be disheartened by adversities, the ‘KIRANTIS’ in a trail of glory wiped out the enemy conquering Khalubar, Kukarthang, Point 5289, Point 5190, Point 5300 and Tekri in their stride thus proving once again that they are the best fighters in the world. During the attack on 'Area Bunker', Captain Manoj Kumar Pandey , in spite of being injured in shoulder and leg, single handedly destroyed one enemy bunker after another until he finally received
1044-431: The same culture and speak the same language. Indian Army commanders have expressed the sentiment that in the event of war, members of the Sikkim Scouts and other local regiments from the border would be ready to fight to the end for their home state. The regiment will be tasked with surveilling and guarding the borders of Sikkim, especially the high mountain passes of the north-eastern border with China. While other units of
1080-461: The tactics of mountain warfare . As the members of the regiment are mostly locals, they are expected to be fairly familiar with the skills needed to operate and survive in the mountainous terrain of Sikkim prior to their enlistment. Their training serves to instruct them in modern methods of warfare and instill military discipline. In an additional advantage to the Indian Army, they are able to obtain information from locals more easily, as they belong to
1116-455: The time that the regiment would be formally established in mid-2015, after the initial recruits had been raised and trained. The raising of the regiment was expected to cost some Rs 32.5 crore (US$ 5 million). The cost of maintaining the regiment was projected to be a slightly greater amount per year. In March 2013, the first recruiting drives for the new regiment were held in Sikkim, which were expected to enrol roughly 500 candidates. Because of
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1152-544: The troops being reverted to their original units. There were no separate insignias authorized for this regiment and the personnel wore the badges of distinction of their parent units, though there have been instances where unofficial badges were made and worn by some personnel. Following Indian independence in 1947, the Gurkha regiments of the British Indian Army were divided between the new Indian Army and
1188-461: Was awarded Vir Chakra. On 09 Dec 1971, the Bn joined the brigade at Chandpur. On morning of 11 Dec 1971, the Pakistanis again tasted the metal of Khukri when an enemy gunboat carrying soldiers and a White Flag fired treacherously on the Bn when they were effecting a surrender. Bn on 14 Dec 1971 ,reached the other end of Daudkandi wherein they were heli-lifted to Kuripara. The Meghna heli bridge was
1224-567: Was back to Misamari in Aug 1971. However, by then the clouds of war and turmoil had already begun to take shape in Bangladesh. By Sep 1971, ‘The First’ moved by train to Dharmanagar from Tezpur and took up defences in Sonamura heights near Comilla, the then East Pakistan (Now Bangladesh). Aggressive patrolling and ambushes were carried out by the Bn to deter the enemy. On 08 Nov 1971, Capt PK Rampal
1260-405: Was being raised as of 2015. The regiment is about 85% Sikkimese, drawing from a population of 612,000 with a large portion of military-age men. The relatives of veterans will be given priority for positions. The Sikkim Scouts is affiliated with the 11th Gorkha Rifles , and use their insignia and flag, with the addition of the words "Sikkim Scouts". The soldiers of the Sikkim Scouts are trained in
1296-540: Was wounded in a gunfight while silencing one MMG post with grenade while carrying out a raid. L/Nk Gurudas was awarded Sena Medal for his daring act of evacuating Capt Rampal from the spot. On the night of 03/ 04 Dec, when the Kirantis were spearheading their way to Buschi, the Battalion created history by capturing 06 Officers including the CO, 8 JCOs and 202 OR of 25 Baloch Frontier Force near Hilalnagar. Subsequently, on 05 Dec,
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