First Guards: Always at the Forefront

HOME ť THE ARMY TODAY ť INFANTRY REGIMENTS ť THE BRIGADE OF THE GUARDS ť FIRST GUARDS

FIRST GUARDS: ALWAYS AT THE FOREFRONT

By Lieutenant Colonel (Dr) A.K. Janardhanan

Š Sainik Samachar - Vol.51, No.9, 01-15 May 2004

First Guards (2 Punjab) was raised in 1762 as the 10th battalion of the Coastal Sepoys and has been re-designated eighteen times since then. The troop composition of the unit was changed to a North Zone Battalion in 1902 and the unit was re-designated as the 69 Punjab. In 1922, the unit was re-designated as 2/2 Punjab Regiment. The battalion, by virtue of its seniority and efficiency, was handpicked by the then Chief of the the Army Staff, General (later Field Marshal) K.M. Carriappa to be re-designated as First Guards in April 1951. Lieutenant Colonel (later Brigadier) Shivinder Singh was the first commandant of the battalion. Since then, 22 commanding officers had commanded the battalion and brought it to the present state of glory. Of them, Lieutenant Colonels MCS Menon, Sehdev Sahgal and PP Singh retired as Generals. The battalion was the first to volunteer for foreign service by land as well as by sea.

In 1824, the battalion became the first Indian Army unit to go out on sea voyage to fight the battle of Ava and Pegu in Burma. Having a strong conviction in the motto, Khushki-o-Tari (By land and sea), the officers and men of the unit showed their courage in many battles fought inside and outside India. The battalion won 31 battle honours which is the highest for any Army unit in the world. The first battle honour Sholinghur, was won in 1781. Subsequently, it won battle honours for the battles of Carnatic, Mysore and Maheidpoor. Prior to first World War, the unit won battle honours for the battles of Ava (1824), Pegu (1826), Burma (1824-26), China (1842) and Lucknow (1858). The battalion fought the First World War in European and Middle East countries. During the First World War, it won the battle honours for the battles of Loos, France Flanders, Helles, Krithia, Gallipoli, Suez Canal and Egypt in 1915; the battles of Defence Kut-el-Amara, Baghdad, Mesopotamia and NWFP (India) in 1917; the battles of Megiddo, Sharon, Nablus and Palestine in 1918 and the battle of Afghanistan in 1919.

During the second World War, the unit was sent to Burma where it won battle honours for the battles of Burma, Point 551 and Kangaw in 1945. In 1948, the battalion fought the battle of Naushera in Jammu and Kashmir and won its 31st battle of honour. The battalion has taken part in all wars fought by the Army, post-independence, besides taking part in counter-insurgency operations in Punjab and Jammu & Kashmir. The unit has participated in various operations like Operation Kipper in 1948, Operation Cactus Lily in 1971, Operation Rakshak during 1990-1993, Operation Vijay in 1999 and Operation Parakram during 2001-2002. The First Guards was presented with the Colours by the then-incumbent President, Dr. Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan at Red Fort, New Delhi on 26 September 1962. It celebrated it's bicentenary in the same year. The Colours were received by Captain (later Major General) Harkirat Singh.

Colours being presented by President Dr. S Radhakrishnan to 1 Guards at Red Fort

In 1968, the battalion became the first infantry unit to take part in an exercise with Indian Navy after Independence. It became the first infantry battalion to be helilifted as an entire battalion group during counter-insurgency operations in Nagaland in 1969-70. The battalion pursued the enemy and fought major battles forcing the enemy to surrender. It eliminated a number of terrorists and made a record recovery of arms, ammunition and explosives from them. It assumed a mechanised infantry profile in 1994. During its 242 years of service to the nation, the battalion also won many gallantry awards and medals in national and international sports. After Independence, it won one Ashok Chakra, one Kirti Chakra, two Shaurya Chakra, four Vir Chakra, 14 Sena Medals, five Vishisht Seva Medals, 23 Mentions-in-Despatches, 23 COAS Commendation Cards and five GOC-in-C Commendation Cards.

Sports occupied a special place in the activities of the battalion. The battalion has several sportsmen who have excelled in the international and national competitions. Notable amongst them are Subedar Major (Honorary Captain) Mehtab Singh (Olympian and Arjuna awardee), Subedar BL Dhaka (Commonwealth Games gold medalist), Havildar Balwant Singh and Havildar Pritam Singh (both Asian Games participants). The unit is proud of its four international and 21 national level sportsmen. In the international arena, they brought laurels in boxing, shooting and athletics whereas at national level, they came up with flying colours in boxing, water polo, basketball, wrestling, athletics and handball.

The battalion celebrated its 242nd Raising Day in 2004. A large number of serving and retired officers, JCOs, jawans and ladies including widows from various parts of India attended the celebrations, displaying a true regimental spirit. A glittering wreath-laying ceremony at the war memorial to pay homage to the men-in-uniform who sacrificed their lives while defending the motherland and the special sainik sammelan marked the occasion. While addressing the troops, the present Commandant, Colonel Dilip Sopori recalled the achievements of the battalion and asked all ranks to put their best. The occasion enabled the serving and retired soldiers of the unit to share their views and experiences.