Bihar Regiment


The Bihar Regiment is an infantry regiment of the Indian Army. It traces its origins back to the British Indian Army. The Bihar Regiment was formed in 1941 by regularising the 11th Battalion, the 19th Hyderabad Regiment, and raising new battalions. The Bihar Regimental Centre is located at Danapur Cantonment, Patna, the second oldest cantonment of India.

Bihari martial tradition

The martial tradition of Bihar troops in the era of British rule traces its origins to the 34th sepoy battalion raised in 1757 by Lord Clive of the British East India Company at Patna. The battalion was formed by men entirely from the Bhojpur district. Later battalions recruited from the entire Shahabad area. Their success in combat impressed Mir Kasim, the Nawab of Bengal from 1760 to 1763, who began raising units trained in western combat techniques. Bihari battalions raised by Mir Kasim defeated the British in some engagements. The Bihari, or Purbiya, soldiers thereafter made up the backbone of the Bengal Infantry of the British Colonial Army.
They were not only excellent soldiers but also quick to learn and apply the tactical drills with initiative. They were disciplined when led by good officers but capable of hostility when their beliefs and customs were disregarded. The Indian Rebellion of 1857 against the introduction of greased cartridges, was led by Bihari troops, who preferred being blown by the guns exploding to losing their faith. Thereafter, Biharis were not encouraged to enter military service by the British until after World War I.
Their victories at home including those of Buxar, Karnatic and Maratha Wars along with those in Malaya, Sumatra and Egypt won them laurels.

Composition and Recruitment

At raising, the class composition of the first battalion was - Adivasis from Bihar, Orissa, Bengal and eastern states, and Ahirs, Rajputs and Mussulmans from Bihar. The regiment continued recruitment from the state of old Bihar, along with a small number from Odisha. Most units presently have two companies of troops from Bihar and parts of Uttar Pradesh, and two companies with tribals, mainly from Jharkhand and Odisha — Mundas, Santhals, Hos, Oraons and others. Some units now have an all India, all class composition.

History

The present Bihar Regiment took its initial form in 1923, when an Indian Territorial Force Battalion named the 11/19 Hyderabad Regiment was formed with its headquarters at Dinapore Cantonment. The Bihar Regiment was formed in 1941 during World War II by regularising the 11th Battalion, 19th Hyderabad Regiment as the 1st Battalion, Bihar Regiment. The first commanding officer was Lieutenant Colonel John Reginald Howard Tweed. The 2nd Battalion was raised in December 1942.

Bihar Regiment in World War II

The newly raised 1 Bihar saw action in the Burma Campaign. The battalion was part of the famous Lushai Brigade and captured Haka on 19 October 1944 and Gangaw on 11 January 1945. 2 Bihar formed part of Operation Zipper under Lieutenant Colonel Sant Singh for the reoccupation of British Malaya.
In recognition of the gallant actions, the Battalion was awarded two Battle Honours namely Haka and Gangaw, and was also bestowed with the Theatre Honour of Burma.

Post Independence

Soon after independence, both battalions participated in the Indo-Pakistani War of 1947 in the Kashmir Valley during 1948–49.
During the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965, 7 Bihar captured Bedori, paving the way for the capture of Haji Pir Pass.
By the start of the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971, the Regiment had expanded to 11 battalions. The sixth, seventh, eighth, tenth and eleventh battalions participated in operations in the eastern sector. 10 Bihar was conferred the theatre honour 'East Pakistan' for the capture of Akhaura. On 15 December 1971, a seaborne expedition was launched at Cox's Bazar to prevent Pakistani troops from escaping into Burma. 11 Bihar formed part of this amphibious task force. In the Western theatre of the war, 3 Bihar captured Wanjal.
4, 7, 9 and 15 Bihar took part in Indian Peace Keeping Force operations during Operation Pawan in Sri Lanka.
In the Spring of 1999, Pakistani soldiers posing as Kashmiri militants crossed the Line of Control in Kargil and entered Indian territory. Operation Vijay was launched by the Indian Army to flush out the intruders. More than 10,000 soldiers and officers of the Bihar Regiment were deployed to Kargil. In a well-planned operation in the Batalik sector, soldiers of 1 Bihar, in a fierce fight with the Pakistan Army, captured Point 4268 and Jubar Ridge in Kuker Thang area in the Batalik sector on the night 06/7 July 1999.
On the night of 15 June 2020, soldiers of 16 Bihar Regiment were involved in a bloody skirmish at Galwan Valley, in Ladakh along the Line of Actual Control . Twenty Indian soldiers were killed, including the commanding-officer of 16 Bihar Colonel B. Santosh Babu. According to Russian government owned TASS news agency, the fighting resulted in death of 45 Chinese soldiers. As per an American intelligence assessment the skirmish led to the death of 35 Chinese soldiers including a commanding officer.
Units of the regiment have also served in UN Peacekeeping operations in Somalia, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Republic of South Sudan in 1993, 2004, 2009, 2014 and 2022

Deployments of units of the Bihar Regiment

Regimental Insignia and Traditions

;Regimental Crest
At raising, Lieutenant Colonel JRH Tweed selected an insignia that had the words “THE BIHAR REGT” in the centre with “ASOKA SHER SHAH” in a semi-circle below. Later on, when the army headquarters asked Tweed to create an emblem for the regiment, he chose one that depicted two rivers of Bihar. This was not very popular with either the officers or the men. Captain Habibullah Khan Khattak, as acting Commanding Officer, 1st Bihar Battalion adopted the present crest from the three headed lions of Ashoka in 1941. In 1945, the then Governor of Bihar, Sir Thomas Rutherford when visiting 1st Bihar at Shillong was so impressed with the regimental crest, that he requested Lieutenant Colonel Khattak's permission to adopt the emblem for the Bihar Government. The Bihar Government then published gazette notification in May 1945 adopting the crest. Post Independence, the Government of India too adopted the three headed Ashoka lions as Government of India's Crest.
;Uniform
The present uniform of the Bihar Regiment includes a red and green lanyard on the left shoulder and the shoulder title Bihar. The green beret has the regimental crest on a scarlet oval base stitched to the beret. The regimental turban is worn by personnel during ceremonial occasions, parades, on guard duty and by those in the regimental band.
;Regimental Motto
In 1974, a decision was taken to formalise the motto of the Regiment as ‘Karm Hi Dharm’, which means ‘Work is Worship’. The decision was soon approved and published in Army Order No. 347/74.
;War Cries
The Bihar Regiment traditionally uses two powerful war cries-
  • Jai Bajrang Bali
  • Birsa Munda Ki Jai

    Bihar Regimental Centre (BRC)

The regimental centre was established on 1 November 1945, by Lieutenant Colonel RC Muller at Agra, following the conversion of the 3rd Training Battalion of the 19th Hyderabad Regiment's Regimental Centre. In April 1946, it relocated to Ranchi, and later that year, in November, moved to Gaya. The first Indian Commandant was Lieutenant Colonel Hardayal Singh Randhawa, who took over command in November 1947. Finally, in March 1949, it found its permanent home in Danapur, where it remains to this day.

Units

BattalionRaising DateNicknameRemarksReferences
1st Battalion15 September 1941Raised at Danapur from 11/19 Hyderabad Regiment by Major JRH Tweed. It was awarded the Battle Honours Haka and Gangaw and Theatre Honour Burma during World War II. It was also awarded Battle Honour Batalik and Theatre Honour Kargil during Kargil War of 1999.
2nd Battalion1 December 1942Raised at Agra.
3rd Battalion1 November 1945The indomitable
4th Battalion1 October 1960Raised at Danapur by Lieutenant Colonel Ajmer Singh Sidhu.
5th Battalion1 January 1963High FiveRaised at Danapur by Major RL Krishnaiya.
6th Battalion1 October 1963Superb SixRaised at Danapur by Lieutenant Colonel JDB Gnanaolivu.
7th Battalion1 April 1964Striking SevenRaised by Major Deep Singh Mertia.
8th Battalion1 January 1965Devipur Bn / The GallantRaised at Danapur by Major Balbir Singh. The first commanding officer was Lieutenant Colonel RL Krishnaiya.
9th Battalion15 October 1965NavmiRaised at Danapur by Lieutenant Colonel JS Gharaya.
10th Battalion1 June 1966Ashok Chakra PaltanRaised at Ramgarh Cantonment by Lieutenant Colonel LW Beglin. Battle honour Akhaura and Theatre Honour East Pakistan,1971.
11th Battalion1 June 1971Raised at Danapur by Lieutenant Colonel RK Kala.
12th Battalion1 January 1976Raised at Danapur by Lieutenant Colonel Kulwant Singh Mann.
14th Battalion15 October 1977Raised by Lieutenant Colonel ARK Reddy at Jhansi.
15th Battalion1 September 1980
16th Battalion11 February 1985Raised at Danapur by Major SD Salokhe.
17th Battalion
18th Battalion7 November 2009Raised at Ranchi.
19th Battalion
20th Battalion20 November 2011Team TwentyRaised by Colonel Rakesh Kumar Bora at Namkum Cantonment.
21st Battalion20 July 1981Raised by Lieutenant Colonel Mohammad Mansoor Mallick.
22nd Battalion
23rd Battalion
4 RR Battalion15 October 1990Raised at Grenadiers Regimental Centre, Jabalpur under Colonel Rohitas Rajpal.
24 RR Battalion1 August 1994Raised at Danapur by Colonel Umed Singh.
47 RR Battalion15 September 2001Raised at Danapur by Colonel Sudhansh Ranjan.
63 RR Battalion30 June 2004Raised at Danapur by Colonel Anand Bhushan.
120 Infantry Battalion 22 August 1949Kalinga TerriersRaised by Lieutenant Colonel JM Shahane. Based at Bhubaneswar, Odisha.
154 Infantry Battalion 10 September 2001Island TerriersRaised by Colonel RS Kaldian at Bangalore. Based at Brichgunj, Andaman and Nicobar Islands.

Affiliations

, the Indian Navy's largest ship and one of its two aircraft carriers was affiliated to the Bihar Regiment in January 2018.

Decorations

Theatre Honours

Burma1942-45
East Pakistan1971
Kargil1999

Battle Honours

HakaBurma Campaign, World War II
GangawBurma Campaign, World War II
AkhauraIndo-Pakistani war of 1971
BatalikKargil War 1999

Chief of Army Staff (COAS) Unit Citation

The following units were awarded the COAS unit citation-
1 BIHAR1999
2 BIHAR2015, 2025
5 BIHAR2004
8 BIHAR1998, 2020
10 BIHAR1994, 2024
11 BIHAR2020
14 BIHAR1992, 2018
17 BIHAR1998, 2026
24 RR2013
47 RR2018

Gallantry awards

The regiment is one of the highly decorated regiments of the Indian Army. The tally of awards, with prominent awardees till date are as under:-
;Pre independence
;Post independence