SORRY ....BUT MY INTENTION IS NOT TO DIVERT FROM THIS SOMBRE AND SERIOUS TOPIC.
HOWEVER I COULD NOT BUT REACT WHEN I SAW PUNJAB REGIMENT.....THIS MUST BE UNIQUE SITUATION WHERE SOLDIERS OF THE SAME REGIMENT AND TRADITIONS ARE IN FACT DADLY ENEMIES ( HOPE NOT FOR EVER )-
The Punjab Regiment of India was formed from the 2nd Punjab Regiment of the British Indian Army in 1947
Prior to independence and partition there were a number of "Punjab regiments" in its fold these were amalgamated to form two regiments: the 1st Punjab Regiment, and the 2nd. At the onset of independence in 1947, the 1st Punjab Regiment being predominantly a Muslim regiment went over to the newly-raised Pakistan army, while the 2nd Punjab Regiment was retained in the Indian Army.
There were transfers of troops between the regiments and other regiments the Punjab Regiment is one of the oldest in the Indian Army. It traces its origins to 1761 when the first battalion was raised at Trichinopoly as Madras Native Infantry with South Indian troops. The first four battalions of what later became the 2nd Punjab Regiment and finally the Punjab Regiment, were raised during the hostilities in the Carnatic in south India between 1761 and 1776. The numbers and titles of the battalions changed during the successive reorganisations of the Madras Presidency Army and later of the Indian Army during the 18th, 19th and 20th Centuries. The names changed from Coast Sepoys to Carnatic Infantry to Madras Native Infantry. After 1857, the British applied the Martial Races theory and north Indian troops replaced the thambis, the regiment eventually being renamed as The Punjab Regiment.
The 1st Battalion of the 2nd Punjab Regiment (now the Punjab Regiment of the Indian Army) initially formed part of the 44 (later 2nd) Indian Airborne Division in an airborne role on the disbandment of the Indian Parachute Regiment in 1946. The unit retained the Punjab Regt uniform except donning the maroon beret, the qualification wings and allied insignias of the airborne. In 1952, when the Parachute Regiment was raised and a Regimental Centre formed, 1st Punjab, became the 1st Bn of the Parachute Regiment and known as the 1st Bn, the Parachute Regiment (Punjab) and retained the same and the regimental shoulder titles till as late as 1960.
In 1951, four battle experienced battalions of the former princely states of Punjab, joined the Regiment. These were a battalion each from the Jind and Nabha State Forces and the First and Second Battalions of Patiala Infantry. They are now designated as the 13, 14, 15 and 16 Punjab. Additional battalions were raised since 1963. In recent years, the Punjab Regiment has contributed towards UN Peacekeeping Operations by sending two of its battalion overseas i.e. in Gaza and Angola (3 and 14 Punjab respectively). The Regimental Centre was first raised at Loralai and was shifted to Multan in 1922, Meerut in 1929 and its present location in Ramgharh, Bihar in 1976.
• Regimental Battalions:
3rd Battalion
9th Battalion
13th Battalion (former State Forces unit)
14th Battalion (former State Forces unit)
15th Battalion (former State Forces unit)
16th Battalion (former State Forces unit)
17th Battalion
18th Battalion
19th Battalion
20th Battalion
21st Battalion
22nd Battalion
23rd Battalion
24th Battalion
25th Battalion
26th Battalion
27th Battalion
28th Battalion
29th Battalion
102 Infantry Battalion (TA) Punjab
150 Infantry Battalion (TA) Punjab
156 Infantry Battalion (TA) (H&H) Punjab
7th Bn Rashtriya Rifles Punjab
22nd Bn Rashtriya Rifles Punjab
53rd Bn Rashtriya Rifles Punjab
Apart from the above battalions, the following were also affiliated to the Regiment at one time or the other. • 1st Battalion --------> 1 Para (Special Forces) • 2nd Battalion --------> 1 Guards (Mechanized) • 4th Battalion --------> Disbanded in 1938 [1] • 8th Battalion --------> Disbanded after World War II • 10th Battalion -------> Regimental Centre
Battle of Longewala
During the Battle of Longewala, 'A' company (reinforced), 23rd Battalion, with about 120 soldiers, survived an assault by a Brigade of the Pakistani Army. The battle was fought at the desert border post of Longewala. The unit fought during the last three hours of the night of December 5th, 1971 unsupported as the Indian Air Force aircraft did not have night attack capabilities. The company commander, Major (later Brigadier) Kuldip Singh Chandpuri, was decorated with the Maha Vir Chakra, the second highest gallantry award in India.
Regimental Insignia
The regiment is perhaps the only infantry regiment with naval Galley as an insignia, anywhere. It was awarded to 69th Punjabis (later 2nd Punjab) in recognition of the readiness to serve overseas, after the battalion had fought in eight overseas campaigns by 1824.
