The much famed and now iconic Gorkha regiment is set to complete 200 years as a force who have served India and the British-ruled Indian forces prior to independence, on April 24.
According to a report in the Indian Express, the first battalion of the regiment took up arms for the British East India Company at Subathu in Himachal Pradesh on April 24, 1815. The battalion still serves with the Indian army and is now called the First Battalion, the First Gorkha Rifles or simply 1/1 GR for short.
With the event coming up later this week, celebrations are due at Pathankot in Punjab where the regiment is currently stationed, according to the report. Bigger celebrations have also reportedly been planned later in the year when the entire regiment meets in October.
Chief of Army Staff General Dalbir Singh, once a Gorkha regiment officer himself, will also attend the function.
Invitations to the event have also been extended to former Indian and British soldiers who have served in the regiment.
The Gorkha regiment started out as one but now comprises seven regiments. Of these, the Indian army takes services from the 1st, 3rd, 4th, 5th, 8th, 9th and 11th regiments; Gorkha troops today also serve in the Rashtriya Rifles, Artillery and the Territorial Army units.
(At The Quint, we are answerable only to our audience. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member. Because the truth is worth it.)