ASSAM RIFLES

Brig. Naveen Sachdeva HQr.21 Sector AR, C/O 99 APO
Agartala, Tripura (South) Dhalai
Pin-932421
Tripura Dhalai 0382-2323607 (O)
0382-2229991 ®
hq21sector-ar@gov.in

Assam Rifles

History

Early history

The present day Assam Rifles can trace its origins back to a paramilitary force known as Cachar Levy which was established by the British in 1835 in the Assam region. The Assam Rifles boast of being the oldest paramilitary force. With approximately seven hundred and fifty men, this force was formed as a police unit to protect settlements against tribal raids and other assaults as British rule slowly moved towards the north east parts of India.^[6]

Despite problems with equipment and training, the contribution of this force in opening the region to administration and commerce was nevertheless quite significant and over time they have become known as the "right arm of the civil and [the] left arm of the military" in the region.^[6] In 1870 these existing elements were merged into three Assam Military Police battalions which were spread out in the Lushai Hills (later 1st battalion), Lakhimpur (2nd battalion) and Naga Hills (3rd battalion). A fourth battalion was later formed Imphal in 1915.^{[citation needed]} The first non-British DG of Assam Rifles was Col. Sidhiman Rai, MC.

Since then the name of the force has undergone a number of changes, as have the roles that it has been required to perform. The current director general of Assam Rifles is Lt Gen Shokin Chauhan AVSM, YSM, SM, VSM.^[10]

World War I and Interwar Years

During World War I, men from what was then known as the Assam Military Police were part of the Indian forces that fought in Europe and the Middle East. Over three thousand men from the force were provided to the Gorkha regiments of the Indian Army in this time, earning seventy-six gallantry awards during the conflict including seven Indian Order of Merit awards and five Indian Distinguished Service Medals.^[6] These men performed with such distinction that the name Assam Rifles was assigned in 1917 as recognition of their part in the war.^[6] Elements of the force were also utilised in India during the war, being used to maintain internal security in order to free up troops from the army for use overseas. During this time, the most notable action occurred in 1917 when columns of the Assam Rifles were despatched to Patna, to restore law and order in the riot-torn city.^[6]

After the war the force returned to northern India where they were used to maintain security amidst growing civil unrest and disorder. In concert with the British Indian Army, they also undertook a number of expeditions into remote tribal areas along the north-east frontier and into Burma. In 1924 they were sent to Malabar, which was then still part of the Madras Presidency, to carry out operations against the Mopla rebels.^[6]

World War II

During World War II, the role of the Assam Rifles evolved once more as they were called upon to undertake even more varied tasks due to their status as both a police and military organisation. This time, however, their service would be undertaken closer to home. After the lightning Japanese advance in 1942, the Assam Rifles fought a number of independent actions behind enemy lines as the task of rear-area defence and rear-guard often fell to them during the Allies retreat into India. Later, as a large influx of refugees fled from the advancing Japanese into India, the Assam Rifles were given the task of managing and organising this mass of humanity.^[6]

They also organized a resistance group on the Indo–Burmese border to counter the Japanese invasion and to harass the enemy line of communications. This group became known as "Victor Force" (or sometimes V-Force), and the nucleus of it was formed from platoons made up of men from the Assam Rifles. As part of this force, Assam Rifles platoons were used as covering forces during the latter stages of the Burma Campaign. Other elements fought in the defensive "boxes" around Kohima, whilst another, from the 4th Battalion, trained as airborne troops, was dropped near the Sittang River behind Japanese lines.^[8] The 1st Battalion, as part of Lushai Brigade was sent ahead of the rest of the force to provide resistance in the Chin Hills. As a testament to the performance of Assam Rifles men during the war, members of the unit received forty-eight gallantry awards. These included: three MBE's, five Military Crosses, 4 Orders of British India, one Indian Order of Merit, 13 Military Medals, 15 Indian Distinguished Service Medals and 7 British Empire Medals.^[6]

Postwar period

Following the end of the war the five Assam Rifles battalions became part of the civil police under the Assam Inspector General of Police.^[8] After independence, however, the Indian government assigned the Assam Rifles its own Director General.^[6] As the numbers of the force and the number of battalions gradually increased, the rank of the force commander was also upgraded until now it is that of Lieutenant General. The present Director General of the Assam Rifles is Lieutenant General Ranbir Singh AVSM, SM, of the Bihar Regiment.^{[citation needed]}

The role of the Assam Rifles continued to evolve when in 1950 a devastating earthquake hit the Assam region and the force was called in to assist in the reconstruction of the areas and help in the resettlement and rehabilitation of those affected by it.^[8] Later the force was once again called to undertake a combat role when, during the 1962 Sino-Indian War elements were used to delay the advancing Chinese forces so that the Indian Army could establish its defence lines.^[6] During this time and since then, the Assam Rifles also maintained their peacekeeping role in the northern areas of India in the face of growing tribal unrest and insurgency. In this environment the maintenance of law and order, countering insurgency and reassuring the people of the region became important tasks for the security forces and initially they fell to the Assam Rifles before the Army assumed control, and then later their experience and goodwill in the region was drawn upon in order to assist the army in conducting these tasks.^[6] In recognition of the unit's skill in counter insurgency operations, three battalions were deployed on Operation Pawan in Sri Lanka between December 1988 and February 1990.^[8]

Through its deployment in what has become known as the "tribal belt", the Assam Rifles have developed an ethos that is based primarily upon the notion of extending the hand of friendship with the people of the region despite the troubles that have occurred there.^[6] This has resulted in their employment in a number of developmental activities in the region as they have worked to bring order and security to it. As such, their role has been further expanded to include the provision of medical assistance and basic education, assisting in reconstruction and agriculture and handling communications in remote areas.^{[citation needed]}

From a force of five battalions in 1947, the Assam Rifles has grown substantially over the years. In 1960 there were seventeen battalions, in 1968 there were twenty-one and today there are forty-six battalions.^[8] In addition, the force has several area HQs, a training centre that processes up to 1,800 recruits at time, and a number of logistics units.^[11]

Decorations

Members of the Assam Rifles have received the following military decorations since Indian independence:

Award	Times awarded
Ashoka Chakra	3
Vir Chakra	5
Kirti Chakra	31
Shaurya Chakra	120
Param Vishisht Seva Medal	5
Ati Vishisht Seva Medal[12]	12
Sena Medal[13]	188
Vishisht Seva Medal[14]	74
Yudh Seva Medal	1
Mention in Dispatches	10

^[15]

N.B. Prior to Indian independence members of the Assam Rifles were eligible for British decorations. During World War I and World War II members of the Assam Rifles received many such awards for their actions, although these have not been included here. There have also been numerous civil awards to members of the Assam Rifles. These can be found at the source listed above.

Director General Assam Rifles

The Director General Assam Rifles (DG AR) is the head of the Assam Rifles. The DG AR has their office in the Headquarters DGAR at Shillong. Appointed by the Government of India, the DG AR reports to the Minister of Home. The Director General is an Indian Army officer of the rank of Lieutenant General and is assisted by three Inspector Generals, each holding the rank of a Major General, and other senior officers heading various staff appointments. The Additional Director General of the Assam Rifles who is a Major General ranked officer serves as the second-in-command to the Director General.

List of DGAR

The first Director General post-Independence was Mr HG Bartly who assumed the appointment on 17 Sep 1947. First Indian Director General was Colonel Sidhiman Rai, MC appointed on 15 August 1948. The rank of officers holding the appointment of Director General Assam Rifles has been consistently upgraded from Colonel to Brigadier (1-Star General) to Major General (2-Star General) to Lieutenant General (3-Star General) now. Indian Army officers on deputation have been holding the appointment of Director General Assam Rifles till date. The current Director General Lt Gen Shokin Chauhan, AVSM, YSM, SM, VSM is the 30th DGAR. The list of Director General Assam Rifles till date is as follows.

No	Name	Appointment Date	Till
1	Mr HG Bartly, CIE, IP	17 Sep 1947	14 Aug 1948
2	Colonel Sidhiman Rai, MC	15 Aug 1948	10 Dec 1949
3	Colonel RND Frier, MC	16 Dec 1949	29 Feb 1952
4	Brigadier K Bhagwati Singh, AVSM	01 Mar 1952	04 May 1954
5	Brigadier K S Katoch, MC	05 May 1954	29 Aug 1955
6	Brigadier Harbhajan Singh	07 Sep 1955	30 Nov 1957
7	Maj Gen AS Guraya	01 Feb 1958	14 Dec 1965
8	Maj Gen SN Bhatia	15 Dec 1965	15 Feb 1968
9	Maj Gen VB Tuli	20 Feb 1968	19 May 1972
10	Maj Gen MG Hazari, PVSM, AVSM	30 Mar 1973	29 Feb 1976
11	Maj Gen (Later Lt Gen) K Chiman Singh, PVSM	01 Mar 1976	25 Jun 1979
12	Lt Gen Sushil Kumar, PVSM	01 Sep 1979	02 Dec 1981
13	Lt Gen JK Puri, PVSM , AVSM	02 Dec 1981	29 Nov 1983
14	Lt Gen PE Menon, PVSM	30 Nov 1983	31 May 1987
15	Lt Gen MK Lahiri, PVSM	01 Jun 1987	21 Dec 1989
16	Lt Gen RV Kulkarni, PVSM, UYSM, AVSM	22 Feb 1990	09 Mar 1992
17	Lt Gen VP Airy, MVC	18 Mar 1992	31 Mar 1993
18	Lt Gen YM Bammi, ADC	15 Jul 1993	30 Apr 1995
19	Lt Gen TPS Rawat, PVSM, VSM	19 May 1995	30 Apr 1998
20	Lt Gen Gurpreet Singh, PVSM	01 May 1998	18 Jan 2001
21	Lt Gen GK Duggal, PVSM, AVSM, VrC	19 Jan 2001	18 Jan 2003
22	Lt Gen HS Kanwar, PVSM, AVSM, VSM	01 Mar 2003	30 Apr 2004
23	Lt Gen Bhopinder Singh, PVSM, AVSM, VSM	01 May 2004	30 Jun 2006
24	Lt Gen Paramjit Singh, PVSM, AVSM, VSM	06 Jul 2006	31 May 2008
25	Lt Gen KS Yadava, PVSM, AVSM, SM, VSM	09 Jun 2008	30 Sep 2010
26	Lt Gen Rameshwar Roy, UVSM, AVSM, YSM	06 Dec 2010	22 Feb 2012
27	Lt Gen Ranbir Singh, PVSM, AVSM, SM	27 Aug 2012	31 Mar 2014
28	Lt Gen R K Rana, SM, VSM	26 May 2014	31 Aug 2015
29	Lt Gen H J S Sachdev, PVSM, AVSM, SM, ADC	01 Sep 2015	30 Sep 2016
30	Lt Gen Shokin Chauhan, AVSM, YSM, SM, VSM	12 Dec 2016	Till Date

Rank Structure

Assam Rifles ranks	Equivalent Army ranks
Director General (Army officer on deputation)	Lieutenant General
Inspector General (Army officer on deputation)	Major General
Deputy Inspector General (Army officer on deputation)	Brigadier
Commandant (Army Officer on deputation)	Colonel
Second in Command	Lieutenant Colonel
Deputy Commandant	Major
Assistant Commandant	Captain

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See also

• Indian Army
• Ministry of Home Affairs
• Central Reserve Police Force
  • Rapid Action Force
• Indo-Tibetan Border Police
• Central Industrial Security Force
• Sashastra Seema Bal
• Assam Regiment
• Border Security Force
• Special Forces of India
• National Security Guard

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