WHAT IS INDIAN TERRITORIAL ARMY

Territorial Army (India)

Territorial army notification for civilian candidate

INDIAN TERRITORIAL ARMY LOGO

The Indian Territorial Army (TA) is a second line of defence after the Regular Indian Army; it is not a profession, occupation or a source of employment. It is only meant for those people who are already in mainstay civilian professions; in fact, gainful employment or self-employment in a civil profession is a prerequisite for joining the Territorial Army. Volunteers of the Territorial Army usually serve in uniform for a few days every year, so that they can bear arms for national defence in times of dire need or national emergencies.

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History

The Indian Defence Force, incorporating Europeans and Indians in separate sections, was formed by the British on 9 October 1917. It was established in order to release regular troops from garrison duties during the First World War. It was divided into British and Indian sections. Like the Indian Army of the time, units in the Indian section consisted primarily of British officers and Indian other ranks. Units in the British section were all British. The Indians were volunteers, but many of the Europeans were conscripted, as the Indian Defence Force Act 1917 made military service compulsory for all Europeans permanently residing in British India (including the princely states) between the ages of 16 and 50. Boys between 16 and 18 were only obliged to undertake training and men over 40 only had to serve in their local district, but men between 19 and 40 were obliged to serve anywhere required within the country. Only the clergy were exempt.

The IDF was generally unpopular among the British conscripts. It was replaced by the Auxiliary Force (for Europeans and Eurasians) and the Indian Territorial Force (for Indians) in 1920.

The modern Territorial Army was inaugurated by the first Indian Governor-General of India, C. Rajagopalachari, on 9 October 1949 after the Independence Territorial Army Act was passed in 1948. The annual Prime Minister’s Territorial Army Day Parade takes place on 9 October.

The Territorial Army initially had various types of units such as armoured regiments, infantry battalions, air defence, medical regiments, engineers field park companies, signal regiments, Electrical and Mechanical Engineers (EME) workshops, coast batteries, Army Service Corps GT Coy, ASC Compo Pl, and AMC field ambulances. By 1972 these units were either disbanded or converted to Regular Army units with the exception of infantry battalions.

Territorial Army units were actively involved in military operations in 1962, 1965 and 1971. The “Terriers” have also taken part in Operation Pawan in Sri Lanka, Operation Rakshak in Punjab & J&K, Operation Rhino and Operation Bajrang in the North East. Departmental units came to the aid of the civil authorities during industrial unrest and natural calamities, most famous being earthquake in Latur (Maharashtra), Uttarkashi in Garhwal Himalaya and the super cyclone in Odisha. The Ecological units have arrested man-made environmental degradation by planting 2.5 crore trees over 20,000 hectare of land in Mussoorie hills and Pithoragarh (Uttarakhand), Bikaner and Jaisalmer (Rajasthan) and ravines of Chambal in Madhya Pradesh.

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Force structure

The Territorial Army is part of the regular Indian Army. The present role of the Territorial Army is to relieve the Regular Army from static duties and assist civil administration in dealing with natural calamities and maintenance of essential services in situations where life of the communities is affected or the security of the country is threatened, and to provide units for the Regular Army as and when required.

The Territorial Army has a strength of approximately 40,000 first line troops (and 160,000 second line troops) comprising departmental Territorial Army units such as railway, IOC, ONGC, telecommunication and General Hospital, and the non-departmental Territorial Army units of infantry battalions and ecological battalions affiliated to various infantry regiments.

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Group headquarters

TA GP HQ, Southern Command – Pune, Maharashtra

TA GP HQ, Eastern Command – Kolkata, West Bengal

TA GP HQ, Western Command – Chandigarh, (union territory)

TA GP HQ, Central Command – Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh

TA GP HQ, Northern Command -Udhampur, Jammu & kashmir

Departmental units

968 Railway Engineer Regiment (TA) – Ludhiana – since disbanded

969 Railway Engineer Regiment (TA) – Jamalpur

970 Railway Engineer Regiment (TA) – Jhansi

971 Railway Engineer Regiment (TA) – Delhi – since disbanded

972 Railway Engineer Regiment (TA) – Muzaffarpur – since disbanded

1031 Railway Engineer Regiment (TA) – Kota

1032 Railway Engineer Regiment (TA) – Adra

1034 Railway Engineer Regiment (TA) – Bangalore – since disbanded

1101 Railway Engineer Regiment (TA) – Chandigarh

1103 Railway Engineer Regiment (TA) – Kota – since disbanded

1105 Railway Engineer Regiment (TA) – Secunderabad

1051 Railway Engineer Regiment (TA) – Ludhiana – since disbanded

1052 Railway Engineer Regiment (TA) – Adra – since disbanded

General Hospital (TA) (500 Beds) – Kolkata

General Hospital (TA) (400 Beds) – Allahabad

General Hospital (TA) (300 Beds) – Jaipur

General Hospital (TA) (300 Beds) – Patiala

General Hospital (TA) (300 Beds) – Guwāhāti

General Hospital (TA) (300 Beds) – Ahmadabad

General Hospital (TA) (400 Beds) – Rohtak (Haryana)

414 ASC Battalion Marketing (TA) – Kamptee

777 Signal Regiment Telecom (TA) – Mhow

801 Engineer Regiment Refineries & Pipelines (TA) – Agra

811 Engineer Regiment ONGC (TA) – Baroda

Non-departmental units

101 Infantry Battalion (TA) Maratha Light Infantry – Pune

102 Infantry Battalion (TA) Punjab – Kalka

103 Infantry Battalion (TA) Sikh Light Infantry – Ludhiana

105 Infantry Battalion (TA) Rajputana Rifles – Delhi Cantonment

106 Infantry Battalion (TA) Para – Bengaluru

107 Infantry Battalion (TA) 11 Gorkha Rifles – Darjeeling

108 Infantry Battalion (TA) Mahar – Dehradun

109 Infantry Battalion (TA) Maratha Light Infantry – Kolhapur

110 Infantry Battalion (TA) Madras – Coimbatore

111 Infantry Battalion (TA) Kumaon – Allahabad

112 Infantry Battalion (TA) Dogra – Jalandhar

113 Infantry Battalion (TA) Rajput – Kolkata

114 Infantry Battalion (TA) Jat – Fatehgarh

115 Infantry Battalion (TA) Mahar – Belgaum

116 Infantry Battalion (TA) Para – Deolali

117 Infantry Battalion (TA) Guards – Tiruchirappalli

118 Infantry Battalion (TA) Grenadiers – Nagpur

119 Infantry Battalion (TA) Assam – Shillong

120 Infantry Battalion (TA) Bihar – Bhubaneswar

121 Infantry Battalion (TA) Garhwal Rifles – Kolkata

122 Infantry Battalion (TA) Madras – Kannur

123 Infantry Battalion (TA) Grenadiers – Jaipur

124 Infantry Battalion (TA) Sikh – New Delhi

125 Infantry Battalion (TA) Guards – Secunderabad

126 Infantry Battalion (TA) Jammu and Kashmir Rifles – c/o 56 APO

150 Infantry Battalion (TA) Punjab – Delhi

151 Infantry Battalion (TA) Jat – Muzaffarpur

152 Infantry Battalion (TA) Sikh – Ludhiana

153 Infantry Battalion (TA) Dogra – Meerut

154 Infantry Battalion (TA) Bihar – Brichgunj (Port Blair)

155 Infantry Battalion (TA) Jammu and Kashmir Rifles – Sujanpur

156 Infantry Battalion (TA) (H&H) Punjab – Rajouri

157 Infantry Battalion (TA) (H&H) Sikh – BD Bari

158 Infantry Battalion (TA) (H&H) Sikh Light Infantry – Janlot

159 Infantry Battalion (TA) (H&H) Dogra – Thalela

160 Infantry Battalion (TA) (H&H) Jammu and Kashmir Rifles – Kupwara

161 Infantry Battalion (TA) (H&H) Jammu and Kashmir Light Infantry – Baramulla

162 Infantry Battalion (TA) (H&H)

163 Infantry Battalion (TA) (H&H)

164 Infantry Battalion (TA) (H&H) Naga – Zakhama

165 Infantry Battalion (TA) (H&H) Assam – Imphal

166 Infantry Battalion (TA) (H&H) Assam – Tezpur

Ecological battalions

128 Infantry Battalion (TA) Rajputana Rifles Eco – Sri Mohangarh

127 Infantry Battalion (TA) Garhwal Rifles Eco – Dehradun

128 Infantry Battalion (TA) Rajputana Rifles Eco – Bikaner

129 Infantry Battalion (TA) JAK LI Eco – Samba

130 Infantry Battalion (TA) Kumaon Eco – Pithoragarh

131 Infantry Battalion (TA) Rajput Eco – Gwalior

132 Infantry Battalion (TA) Rajput Eco – Bhatti Mines, Delhi

133 Infantry Battalion (TA) Eco

134 Infantry Battalion (TA) Assam Eco

135 Infantry Battalion (TA) Assam Eco

Training

Infantry training is carried out on urban and provincial systems.

Urban systems of training

Recruit Training: Training is carried out on weekends and holidays. Four hours of training is counted as one day. Thirty-Two days in the first year only including a camp of not less than four days if the trainee volunteers with the written consent of his employer, if any.

Annual Training: A minimum of thirty-six days, with extensions up to a maximum of sixty days including a camp for fourteen days.

Post Commission Training: All officers are required to undergo ten weeks of post commission training within two years of their commissioning. Ex-officers from the Regular Army or Short Service Commissioned can be exempted from this training at the sole discretion of the commanding officer.

Voluntary training to gain additional military training, provided the trainee volunteers with the written consent of the employer if any.

Provincial systems of training

Recruit Training: For a continuous period of thirty days in the first year only.

Annual Training: For a continuous period of two calendar months in the first and subsequent years.

Post commission Training: 90 days Post Commission Training is compulsory within two years of commissioning IMA, Dehradun.

Voluntary Training to gain additional military training, provided the trainee volunteers with the written consent of his employer, if any.

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