KATHMANDU, NOVEMBER 10

In a departure from the Indian government’s policy of recruiting soldiers in Gurkha Rifles regiments from among Nepal-domiciled and India-domiciled Gurkhas in a 60:40 ratio, the Indian government has okayed the Indian Army’s proposal to recruit people from the Kumaon and Garhwal regions of Uttrakhand in GR regiments.

On Saturday, Indian Express reported that the Indian authorities had approved recruitment of non-Gurkha personnel in three of the seven GR regiments.

Ashok Mehta, who retired as major general from Indian Army, told THT that the Indian government okayed the Indian Army’s proposal to recruit people from Kumaon and Garhwal in Gurkha Rifles two months ago, as it had been facing a shortfall in its Gurkha regiments for the past two years. He added that although it was a pilot project, it was a departure from the Indian government’s policy, as it could have recruited Gurkhas from Nepal to make up for the shortfall. He, however, hastened to add, “The Indian government’s move to recruit from Kumaon and Garhwal is an old policy and it has nothing to do with the current tension between India and Nepal over Nepal’s new map.”

Nepal had issued a new political and administrative map depicting Kalapani, Lipulekh and Limpiyadhura as its own territories.

India has political and administrative control over these areas and claims them to be its own.

Mehta said the Indian government used to recruit Nepalis in Assam Rifles as well, but stopped doing that 20 years ago. He said the new move was aimed at reducing dependence on Nepali Gurkhas because political leaders in Nepal often call for stopping recruitment of Nepalis in Gurkha regiments and voices were being raised in India also that only Indians should be recruited in Gurkha regiments.

He said the Indian government might have taken the new initiative to prepare for the scenario in which the Nepali government might decide to prohibit Nepalis from joining the Indian Army.

Mehta said till the mid- 70s, India recruited all soldiers in Gurkha Rifles from Nepal, but in the mid- 1970s, the ratio of Nepal-domiciled Gurkhas and India-domiciled Gurkhas was 70:30. This ratio changed to 60:40 in the 1980s.

Spokesperson for Nepal’s Ministry of Defence Krishna Prasad Gyawali and Spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Sewa Lamsal told THT separately that the Nepal government had no plan to prohibit Nepali Gurkhas from joining the Indian Army.

Recruitment of Nepalis in the Indian Army dates back to the British Raj. A tripartite agreement signed by Nepal, India and the United Kingdom in 1947 allowed the Indian Army and the British Army to recruit soldiers from Nepal.