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Gurkhas in the Indian Army - images and information

beckham

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Origins

Impressed by the fighting qualities displayed by the Gorkhas during the Gurkha War, Sir David Ochterlony was quick to realise the potential of the Gorkhas in the British Indian Army. Until then, Gorkha defectors were generally used as irregular forces. In April 1815, the first battalion of the Gorkha Regiment, was raised as the Nasiri regiment. This regiment later became the 1st King George’s Own Gurkha Rifles, and saw action at the Maulun fort under Lieutenant Lawtie.

They were instrumental in the expansion of the British East India Company throughout the subcontinent. The Gorkhas took part in the Anglo-Sikh wars, Afghan wars, and in suppressing the Indian Rebellion of 1857. Throughout these years, the British continued to recruit the Gorkhas and kept increasing the number of Gorkha regiments.

By the time First World War started, there were 11 Gorkha regiments under the British Indian Army. The Gorkha regiments played a vital role in the Commonwealth armies during both the World Wars seeing action everywhere from Monte Cassino in the west to Rangoon in the east, earning Battle Honours everywhere. As a testament to the psychological factors of the Gorkha regiments on the enemies, during the North African campaign, the German army were really fearful of the Gorkha's wielding their khukris during battles.:sniper:


Current Strength

Currently there are 7 Gorkha regiments serving in the Indian Army. Six regiments were transferred from the British Indian Army, one regiment was formed after independence. The following is a list of the Gorkha Regiments currently serving in the Indian Army:
1 Gorkha Rifles previously 1st King George V's Own Gurkha Rifles (The Malaun Regiment);

*3 Gorkha Rifles previously 3rd Queen Alexandra's Own Gurkha Rifles.

*4 Gorkha Rifles previously 4th Prince of Wales's Own Gurkha Rifles

*5 Gorkha Rifles (Frontier Force) previously 5th Royal Gurkha Rifles (Frontier Force).

*8 Gorkha Rifles aka The Shiny Eight

*9 Gorkha Rifles

*11 Gorkha Rifles (Raised after the independence of India)



The individual Gorkha rifle regiments of India are collectively known for regimental purposes as the 'Gorkha Brigade' between themselves and are not to be confused with the Brigade of Gurkhas of the British Army.


Their motto, Kafar Bhanda Marnu Ramro, or "better to die than live a coward" should itself be testament enough to the bravery and quality of this regiment.


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The 1st Battalion of 1 Gorkha Rifles of the Indian Army take position outside a simulated combat town during a training exercise.

The recruit training below is from the first (and as far as I know, only) comprehensive photography of Indian army recruit training, held at 9 Gorkha Rifles's Gorkha Training Centre in Varanasi, which it shares with 3 GR.


War Cry -jai maha kali..Ayo Gorkhali (victory to Maha kali..The Gorkhas are here) :devil:







Here a drill instructor is busy 'motivating'. This particular exercise involves basically doing handstand pushups for upwards of 15-20 minutes


Initial Weapons training... here a drill instructor instructs recruits on the various infantry weapons used, like the INSAS, FN FAL, 7.62mm IB, etc. These pictures are several years old, and since then, army units have standardized with the INSAS system.:guns:


One of the unique weapons of the Gorkha regiments is the Kukhri knife, which was, as legend goes, designed from the Trishul. Here, Kukhri weapons training with traditional training shield. Most regiments have some form of unique weapon relating to their histories and ethnic groups, like the Chakram of Sikh regiments, the Dah knife of Assam rgt, etc.
 
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Beckham,

Wonderful pics. Thanks for sharing these with us.:victory::victory:
 
As the weeks progress, the exercises quickly become modeled on real-world situations.




Troops are trained on a variety of weapons and kit, for real world-scenarios ranging from conventional to biological to anti-terror to COIN operations



Reality is a major component to these exercises, with open-ended scenarios that can go any number of ways, depending on how the recruits react to circumstances.


The drill instructors really get into it as well, here is one playing a villager complete with hut, goats and rural dress, during cordon search operation exercises.
 

Only if a recruit successfully completes the training does he get the honor with the title of Jawan ("soldier") of the Regiment. Each regiment has its own tradition for the Passing Out ceremonies. In the Gorkha Regiments, newly graduated Jawans take an oath to Regiment and Country, over the Regimental Bagvad Gita (Hindu holy book written of Lord Krishna's discourse to General Arjuna on the Dharma ("Duty") of a soldier, during the Mahabharat War)

The final part of the ceremony is the honor of receiving the Kukhri sidearm, which will follow the Jawan to battle for the rest of his career and beyond.


The Honor Guard salutes their new comrades. Note the distinctive ceremonial uniform of 9 Gorkha Rifles Rgt


The new recruits then proudly march off


As the band plays "Bir Gorkhali", and there is much celebrating. Note the Band's Regimental Dress


A new Jawan of the 9 GR reads about the humbling honors that his Regiment earned


A new Jawan of 3 GR regiment, who shares the Varanasi Gorkha Training Centre, sharpens his Kukhri after the parade.
 
How do they look like!? They don't look typical indian, they look more like a mix of Philippine and African!? Often many gorkhas committed suicide there!
 
How do they look like!? They don't look typical indian, they look more like a mix of Philippine and African!? Often many gorkhas committed suicide there!

Gentleman, what is a typical indian look? India is an amalgamation of varied races. Indian army welcomes everyone.

Kindly refer to the varied regimental structure of the Indian army . You will find only one typical look. i.e they look Lethal and prepared to die in the battlefield.
 
How do they look like!? They don't look typical indian, they look more like a mix of Philippine and African!? Often many gorkhas committed suicide there!


India is a very diverse nation, people from different regions look very different ! people from east india look more like chinese... gurkhas are from north-east india they look like indo-mongol mix !

i hav no idea gurkhas committing suicide .can u explain ?
 
India is a very diverse nation, people from different regions look very different ! people from east india look more like chinese... gurkhas are from north-east india they look like indo-mongol mix !

i hav no idea gurkhas committing suicide .can u explain ?


Some corrections here. Gurkhas are not from North East of india. They are from Nepal and from north indian states like uttaranchal.

However , few regiments and paramilitary from north-east like , Naga regiment , Assam rifles, have brrowed couple of gorkhas, and kumaon regiments to have a good regimental strength.

But yes , they have one common similarity . They don't know what Fear is.
 
Gurkhas’ Reputation for
Bravery Precedes Them

By Leela Jacinto

It was a series of bloody conflicts fought in the great hill ranges of northeastern India in the early 19th century that saw big battle losses and grudging admiration on both sides for their respective foes.

Since 1812, the British East India Company, rapidly gaining ground across the subcontinent and eager to tame the tribes along the Himalayan foothills, had fought a series of battles against the fierce Nepali tribes.

But in 1816, the Nepali defense of the hill fortress of Kalunga in the Himalayan foothills so impressed the British that in the terms of a peace treaty signed with Nepali King Prithvi Narayan Shah, the British shrewdly included a clause under which the Gurkhas could serve in the East India Company's army.

That was the start of a long, illustrious military alliance between the British and the Gurkhas, a term loosely used to describe men of Nepal who serve as soldiers in the armies of Nepal, India or Britain.

Drawn mostly from the Magar, Gurung, Rai, Limbu and Sunwar hill tribes — tribes the British considered fit fighters — the term "Gurkha" is an Anglicization of the Gorkha district, the birthplace of King Prithvi Narayan Shah, who is considered the father of modern Nepal.

Ayo Gurkhali!

With their battle cry "Ayo Gurkhali!" — "Here come the Gurkhas!" — the hardy Nepali hillsmen gained such a reputation as fighters that stories of enemies fleeing their positions upon hearing rumors of their advance abound.

During the Great Indian Mutiny of 1857, when local sepoys revolted against their British officers, a rumor running through the northern Indian town of Simla that the Gurkhas had joined the sepoys so frightened the resident British that they panicked and fled the town, some men even abandoning their wives and children.

But the Gurkhas stayed loyal to the British and did not join the mutinying sepoys, passing their first test of loyalty.

Many years later, after Argentina's surrender to Britain in the 1982 Falklands War, Argentine troops told reporters that rumors of the Gurkhas slitting the throats of 40 Argentine soldiers in single strokes and of Gurkhas jumping into enemy foxholes with live grenades gave them the jitters and seriously shattered their morale.

It's hard to tell where the legends of Gurkha ferocity spring from and how much of it is true. Many of their deeds have been recorded in official military dispatches, but many more have been gleaned from diaries of British officers through the centuries, and historians argue that many of these entries may have been liberally embellished.

Blood Thirst of the Blade

Certainly the most pervasive myth of Gurkha ferocity fans from their famed wielding of the kukri, or the curved Himalayan knife.

Legend has it that once a Gurkha unsheathes his kukri, he must draw blood with it. When a Gurkha unsheathes his weapon in a noncombative situation, he must then cut himself to satisfy the "blood thirst" of the blade.

With a motto that says, "Kaphar hunnu bhanda marnu ramro" — "Better dead than live like a coward" — Gurkhas are known to be brutal in battle, but they can also be charming and delightfully childish in peace.
During their World War I operations in the Arabian Peninsula, British officers recorded the Gurkhas' delight when they encountered the sea and camels for the first time.

When a Mule Kicks a Gurkha

Stories of the toughness of Gurkha skulls also do the rounds, with one story going so far as to claim that if a mule kicks a Gurkha's head, the Gurkha may suffer a headache, but the mule will certainly go lame.

But among all the legends surrounding the Gurkhas, the ones that have the greatest ring of truth are stories of the Nepali fighters' discipline and literal performance of orders from military superiors.

One particular diary entry talks about how an Indian army doctor once went up to a British officer and told him that a wounded Gurkha would surely die unless he displayed some "will to live."

The officer, the story goes, stormed into the hospital room and barked the order: "Live!" The wounded Gurkha obeyed.
 
The ferocity of the Gurkhas is not Indian "propaganda". It has been documented throughout history.

Assam rifles is not the Indian army. And as far as i'm aware Nepali Gurkhas are not allowed to serve in a paramilitary force.
 
How do they look like!? They don't look typical indian, they look more like a mix of Philippine and African!? Often many gorkhas committed suicide there!

They look like Indians. Lot of people in the North east of India look like Nepalis and many Nepali people look like Indians.

Some more background:
Gorkhas have a reputation for never losing their homeland a reputation that not even Afghans can match. After British were unable to conquer Nepal in the Gurkha war, they decided that having Gorkhas on their side was a good idea - hence the formation of Gurkha regiment in British army. Gurkhas are still recruited into British army even if they are not citizens of Britain. The tradition was also followed by India.

Gorkha/Gurkha is also a name of district in Nepal, it is part of the name of many Indian organizations (eg: Gorkha Hill council) and is also the name of the people from Nepal.
So any of the rumors about Gurkhas committing suicide is likely to be about non-military group. Anyway there is no evidence that suicide rate amongst Gurkhas are higher than any other group.
 
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