Dogra Regiment


The Dogra Regiment is an infantry regiment of the Indian Army. The regiment traces its roots directly from the 17th Dogra Regiment of the British Indian Army. When transferred to the Indian Army like its sister regiments, the numeral prefix was removed. Units of the Dogra Regiment have fought in all conflicts that independent India has been engaged in, making it one of the most prestigious and most decorated regiments of the Indian Army.

History

The Dogras, the inhabitants of 'Duggar' or Dogra land hail from the Indian states of Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh and the hilly regions of Punjab. The Dogra Regiment traces its lineage to 1858, when the Agra Levy was raised by the British East India Company as part of the Bengal Army. The Dogras were added into the Bengal Army on the recommendation of Sir Fredrick Roberts, the then commander-in-chief of India, who decided to add a Dogra regiment because he was impressed by the loyalty and soldierly qualities of Dogra troops. The Agra Levy was later renamed the 38th Dogras. In 1887 the 37th Bengal Infantry was raised and later renamed the 37th Dogras. In 1900 the 41st Bengal Infantry was raised and also later renamed the 41st Dogras. In 1922 the Indian government reformed the army, moving from single battalion regiments to multi-battalion regiments. The 37th, 38th and 41st Dogras were all amalgamated into the 17th Dogra Regiment. It dropped '17th' from its title in 1945 and was allocated to India upon its independence in 1947.
The 38th Dogras served in the siege of Malakand in 1897 and during the First World War, served in Aden, Suez and Palestine during the battle of Megiddo. The 37th Dogras took part in the Chitral Expedition in 1895 and during the First World War, fought in the Second Battle of Kut and the capture of Baghdad as part of the 14th Indian Division. The 41st Dogras served in China from 1904 to 1908 as part of an international force, and then served on the Western Front and the Mesopotamia Campaign during World War I.
In 1949, Karan Singh, son of Maharaja Hari Singh, the last maharaja of the princely state of Jammu and Kashmir, was appointed Regent by his father. He wrote the Dogra Regiment's regimental song, 'Dikhi Lai Dogra Desh'.
Perhaps the best compliment given to the Dogras has come from Field Marshal Sir William Slim who wrote to them thus:

Formation

The regiment was formed in 1922 through the amalgamation of three separate regiments of Dogras into the 17th Dogra Regiment. They were:
The regiment has produced one Chief of Army Staff, Gen. Nirmal Chander Vij. Vij also served as the 10th Colonel-in-Chief of the Dogra Regiment and the Dogra Scouts.

Indo-Pakistani War of 1947–48

Pakistani raiders had besieged and reduced Skardu in early 1948. It was vital that Leh, the next likely target, be relieved before it was attacked by the raiders. Maj. Prithi Chand, along with a band of 40 volunteers from the 2nd battalion, Dogra Regiment, began a hazardous mid-winter ascent of the Zojila pass on 16 February 1948, with rifles and ammunition for the garrison. They reached Leh on 8 March, where an ad hoc force for defence was organised, followed soon by a Jammu and Kashmir State Forces detachment bringing additional weapons.

Sino-Indian War

A company from the 4th battalion fought in the battle of Walong in November 1962 and suffered significant casualties against a vastly numerically superior Chinese force.

Indo-Pakistani War of 1965

On September 2, 1965, the 3rd battalion, commanded by Lt. Col. R.B. Nair, was given the task to capture Point 7702 in Jammu and Kashmir. The brigade then planned two battalion attacks with the 2nd battalion, Sikh Regiment on the left to clear the Raja picket and the 3rd battalion, Dogra Regiment on the right to capture point 7702. The battalion left late in the evening on September 5, and successfully sneaked past Raja picket. The two leading companies were to assault from the left flank and cross the start line at 04:00 on September 6 under the able leadership of Maj. Greesh Chandra Verma and Capt. Gurdev Singh Bawa. B and C companies stormed point 7702 at 05:00 on September 6. After a fierce hand-to-hand and bunker-to-bunker fight, the enemy was uprooted from the strongly built defences and the post was captured by 05:45.
Maj. G.C. Verma was wounded in the head and refused to be evacuated. He breathed his last on seeing the success signal being fired from his pistol by Sub. Rattan Singh. Capt. G.S. Bawa, the other assaulting company commander was also wounded fatally while silencing an enemy MMG. The battalion lost two officers, one JCO and 14 ORs while 3 officers, 2 JCOs and 60 ORs were wounded in the battle. 39 men of enemy were killed and 5 were taken as POWs.
In recognition of this valour the battalion was awarded the battle honour Chand Tekri and theatre honour of Jammu and Kashmir 1965.

Indo-Pakistani War of 1971

On the eastern front, the 9th battalion was responsible for the fall of Suadih, a small village in East Pakistan that was a strong bastion of the Pakistan Army's most fortified position in the country. This led to the ultimate liberation of East Pakistan and a victory for the Indian Army. For this task, 9 Dogra was awarded the battle honour of Suadih.
The 5th battalion was posted in Asal Uttar, Punjab, where it was assigned to accord depth to the defences of Khem Karan.

Kargil War

The 5th battalion fought in the Kargil War to capture Tiger Hill.

UN Peacekeeping

The Dogra Regiment has not only contributed to the United Nations Peacekeeping Forces in the Gaza Strip, Korea, and the Congo, but has also contributed in providing various military observers in various peace keeping operation around the globe. The 1st, 3rd and 9th battalions have participated in UN peacekeeping missions.

Recruitment

The recruitment of troops into the Dogra Regiment has been that of a fixed class composition: 50 percent from Himachal Pradesh, 25 percent from Jammu and Kashmir, and a balance from Hoshiarpur, Nawanshahr, Gurdaspur, and Rupnagar districts of Punjab. Enlisting in army is seen as honourable pursuit for Dogras; soldiering has not only become a substantial part of the economic structure of the Dogra hills, but created social and cultural traditions built on the people's association with the army.

Regimental Centre

Initially, the Dogra battalions were raised in various different places by the British Indian Army. After independence the regimental centre was constructed in Meerut, Uttar Pradesh. Later on it was moved to Faizabad Cantonment, Uttar Pradesh, where it is currently located. A couple of years ago a former Colonel of the Regiment had made a plan to move the regimental centre to Himachal Pradesh, the state where more than 50% of the regiment's troops are from.

Units

The regiment also has 4 Territorial Army battalions.
Others:
The battalions have participated in various UN missions; the 3rd battalion have served in Korea, the 1st battalion has served in Congo, the 9th battalion has served in Gaza and the 5th battalion has served in Sierra Leone. The 3rd battalion was the first-ever battalion of the Indian Army to go on a UN mission.
The 4th battalion has the additional honour of being the first battalion of the Indian Army to be deployed on the Siachen Glacier.

Affiliations

In the year 1990 affiliations of Indian Navy ships were being done with the Indian Army Regiments, INS Ranvijay was affiliated with the Dogra Regiment in 1997. Apart from this, the Dogras are also affiliated with the Regiment of Artillery.

Battle honours

Two battalions of the 17th Dogra Regiment, also fought in the Malayan Campaign. After the Fall of Singapore, a large number of the captured troops later went on to join the Indian National Army.

Pre-independence

Combined battle honours of 37th Dogras, 38th Dogras, 41st Dogras:
;World War 1
;World War 2

Post-independence

Colonels of the Dogra Regiment

Gallantry Awards

Before Indian independence, the Dogras had to their credit two Victoria Crosses and 44 Military Crosses besides 312 other awards.
The following battalions of the regiment have also been awarded the Chief of Army Staff's Unit Citation: