A history of valour

King Prithvi Narayan Shah, a Gorkha, consolidated modern-day Nepal in the 18th century. Later, his successors expanded territory to parts of Kumaon and Garhwal and up to Kangra Fort in Himachal Pradesh.

In 1809, Maharaja Ranjit Singh pushed the Nepalese forces back. At the same time, he was impressed by the valour of the Gorkha soldiers. Singh, based in Lahore, then decided to induct them into the Sikh Army.

The Gorkhas, those who moved from Nepal to Lahore to join Singh’s army, earned the epithet “Lahurey”, a term which is used even now to refer to recruits from Nepal – This is how the tradition of Gorkhas from Nepal joining India as soldiers begun.

Later, during the 1814–16 Anglo-Nepalese War between the Gorkha Kingdom and the British East India Company – which ended with the signing of the Treaty of Sugauli in 1816 – the bravery of the Nepalese soldiers impressed the British as well. The Gorkha Rifles (Regiments) were formally established thereafter. This legacy, which commenced with the 1st King George’s Own Gorkha Rifles continues even today.

Consequently, the Gurkha (anglicised version of Gorkha) Rifles proved their mettle in scores of battles. They served on the battlefields of France in the battles of Loos, Givenchy, and Neuve Chapelle; in Belgium at the battle of Ypres; in Iraq, Persia, Suez Canal and Palestine, Gallipoli and Salonika.

During the Battle of Loos (June–December 1915), a battalion of the 8th Gurkhas fought to the last man, repeatedly attacking German defences: In the words of the Indian Corps Commander, Lt. General Sir James Willcocks, the Gorkha soldier “found its Valhalla”, or a heaven of honour, glory, and happiness.

More than 2,00,000 Gorkha soldiers fought in the British Indian Army through the years, suffering nearly 20,000 casualties and receiving nearly 2,000 gallantry awards.

In World War II, there were ten Gurkha regiments, with two battalions each, making a total of 20 pre-war battalions. Following the Dunkirk evacuation of 1940, the Nepalese government offered to increase recruitment, eventually raising it to 43 battalions. Ten Victoria Crosses were won by Gorkha Soldiers alone.

Post-Independence, Nepal-domiciled Gorkhas began to be recruited into the Indian Army under the ‘Tripartite Agreement’ reached freely and honourably between the governments of Nepal, India and the United Kingdom in 1947.

Assimilation into the Indian Army

The Gorkha Brigade is a fully integrated part of the Indian Army. The bravery of the Gorkhas from Nepal inherited by the Indian Army post-independence, has been proven repeatedly in wars and peace.

The inclusion of Nepal-domiciled Gorkha personnel with India-domiciled Gorkhas and other Indian Army units, with troops hailing from across India is absolute: There is no difference in role and tasking and they perform the same duties as all other units.

Many Gorkha soldiers who become officers in the Indian Army have risen to become generals and have commanded critical formations in war and peace, most credibly.

Here are some basic statistics: The Indian Army’s Nepal-domiciled Gorkhas add to about 32,000; with an annual intake between 1,200 and 1,500 recruits, about a platoon strength per unit. A very large portion of their salaries is transferred to Nepal through the Nepal State Bank and Everest Bank.

There are also approximately 1,30,000 veterans of the Indian Army settled in Nepal and in India, with an annual pension budget transferred to them in Nepal being around ₹2,800 crore ( ₹28 million).

An uncertain future?

Is this illustrious history, which started from Lahore under Maharaja Ranjit Singh’s Sikh army, the Gurkhas of the British Indian army and the Nepal-domiciled Gorkhas of the Indian Army, coming to an end?

It was first the Covid pandemic, which impacted the recruitment of Gorkhas from Nepal. Then, the announcement of the Agnipath scheme, which again affected recruitment and also put the Nepal government in a political bind.

The Agnipath scheme with 25% retention of newly recruited soldiers after four years changes the character of the Indian Army and would naturally affect soldiers from Nepal.

The Nepal government felt that the recruitment of Gorkhas from Nepal under the Agnipath scheme was not in consonance with the Tripartite Agreement signed among Nepal, India, and Britain on November 9, 1947.

Kathmandu has also conveyed to New Delhi its disappointment for not having been consulted before the scheme was introduced.

In fact, Gorkha veterans who expect a dramatic change in Gorkha regiments because of the new scheme have been vociferously arguing against it.

Kathmandu is also concerned that the 75% of soldiers discharged after four years of service could pose a security threat, having undergone military training.

The scheme has its possible positives for the Gorkhas as well. Even without the job security that was previously assured, the scheme has proposed a severance package, which with credible personal savings should facilitate a young person to begin a post-army life after being discharged. It may also be feasible to provide employment in India in both public and private sectors.

Impact on Gorkha regiment and veterans

A critical component in this unique arrangement is the personal and familial relationships created over two centuries and more so in the last 75 years. For example, most serving Gorkha unit officers have travelled to Nepal, and stayed at veterans’ homes, some in areas not easily inaccessible.

Even now, veterans in Nepal look for opportunities to meet and greet their current peers in India and in Nepal at functions and marriages.

To be sure, economic considerations for the Gorkha veterans hailing from Nepal matter. The salaries and pensions of Nepal-domiciled Gorkhas of the Indian Army are handsome, and above the per capita income in Nepal. Their earnings also add to Nepal’s Gross Domestic Product.

Can we change a recruitment policy, setting aside the singular history of soldiers having shed blood together?

The ties should not only be measured in terms of whether Indian Army veterans in Nepal are a major pressure group -- or not -- in their home country.

Though economics and geopolitics matter in foreign relations, there are also – equally important -- intangibles like people-to-people relations. Of course, whether the deep-rooted bonhomie impacts the broader Indo-Nepal ties is a subjective issue and a matter of discussion.

Decision makers have to remember that relations between soldiers and officers who were together in adversity in the thick of combat and lost friends in battle cannot be glossed over: Nowhere else can one find better relations between the soldiers of the two countries like in this case.

A point to remember is that the delinking of Nepalese soldiers serving in the Indian Army is not a matter of a decade or two. The serving ones would serve on till 2050 or thereabouts. The veterans could well continue to draw pensions for decades.

One only hopes that the recruitment of “Lahureys” in the Indian army from Nepal commences soonest: This is too important a bridge -- which has lasted over two hundred years -- to be allowed to collapse.

Lt. General Rakesh Sharma retired as the Adjutant General of the Indian army. He was commissioned into the Gorkha Rifles in 1977.