New Delhi: A Territorial Army camp in Manipur’s Noni district on the intervening night of Wednesday and Thursday, was hit by a landslide, 38 killed including 23 soldiers,
So far 13 Territorial Army (TA) personnel and five civilians have been rescued. Search is on for 38 missing people.
According to sources in the Defense and Security Establishment, the soldiers belonged to 107 units of the Territorial Army affiliated with the Indian Army’s Gorkha Rifles.
Territorial Army Essentially a volunteer force that can be quickly mobilized to defend a state. It was stationed near the Tupul yard railway construction site since the rail Contact Between Manipur to Jiribam in Assam was being developed here.
Unlike the regular army, however, soldiers of Territorial Army Must have completed the mandatory two-month incarnation, or service period, in a year. It does not provide them with a full time career. They have the option of returning to civilian life after two months, but most of the jawans remain with their units because, unlike officers, many may not have another source of livelihood.
In the Manipur incident, sources said the soldiers were continuing with their avatars and deployed like any regular soldier.
But what purpose does the Territorial Army serve? ThePrint clarifies.
in the originalThe Indian Territorial Army is a part-time military organization for Indians who may have other jobs, but still wish to serve in the defense forces.
In book, Territorial Army: History of India’s Part Time Soldiers, Surendra Singh writes, “The Territorial Army is a force of amateur soldiers, who commit themselves to the defense of the country”.
according to defense service regulationsPart I The Army has three main components – the ‘Regular Army’, the ‘Army Reserve’ and the ‘Territorial Army’.
Duty According to the Indian Army website, TA includes “relieving the regular army from stationary duties”, while also providing assistance to civilian officers in times of natural disasters and tragedies.
In addition, they also help the civil administration in providing essential services in areas where the state machinery is spread or there are security hazards.
The TA has about 40,000 soldiers who work in ‘departmental units’, such as the Railways, the Indian Oil Corporation, the Oil and Natural Gas Corporation of India, and the General Hospital; and ‘non-departmental units’, such as infantry battalions and ecumenical battalions.
Any citizen between the age of 18-42 years can be part of the service.
The pensionable age for a soldier below the rank of officer in TA is the same as that of a regular soldier – 15 years.
Also, like regular soldiers, the Army can dismiss a TA soldier on various grounds including indiscipline before he reaches 15 years of service. Dismissal disqualifies the soldier from pension.
Those who join TAs as officers also have similar service requirements, however, unlike jawans, they usually meet their minimum requirement of two months to incarnate and go back to their regular jobs. go.
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A Brief History of the Territorial Army
The origin of the Territorial Army of India can be traced back to the days of the British Raj, when the British created a Territorial Army through the Indian Territorial Act, 1920. This act divided the army into two parts. Two Part – Auxiliary Force and Indian Territorial Force. The Auxiliary Force was for Europeans and Anglo-Indians, the Indian Territorial Force was for the Indians.
After independence, Territorial Army Act, 1948 was passed, resulting in the formation of the present Indian Territorial Army. the army was inauguration of By C. Rajagopalachari in October 1949.
From 2020, the Indian Army has been restructuring the TAs for better operational and intelligence roles, especially in the Andaman Islands, to keep an eye on possible Chinese incursions into the region.
TA units were also actively involved in operations during the 1962, 1965 and 1971 wars.
The report has been corrected to reflect the stated retirement age for a Territorial Army personnel.
(Edited by Jinnia Ray Chowdhury)
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