Indianisation
Encyclopedia
Indianisation was a process introduced in the later period of British India (early 20th century) whereby Indian officers were promoted to more senior positions in government services, formerly reserved for Europeans. In the Indian police, the rank of Deputy Superintendent
was introduced to prepare Indian officers for promotion to higher rank. In the armed forces, the process referred to the replacement of British officers by Indians. The progress was slow and unsatisfactory to to the Indian nationalist politicians, however events, mainly World War II and Independence shortly after, overtook the program.
to be trained as officers of the British Indian Army. There was great disquiet amoingst the British who disliked the idea of serving under native officers; others felt that without good breeding, public school exposure and sufficient suitable training, Indians would not become good officers and would neither be able to lead or be accepted by the native troops. There was a firm belief amongst the British officers and the Government that only the public school system could provide the right kind of officer and that too only from proper stock.
The Sandhurst training directly pitted Indian boys in conditions alien to their experience, upbringing and experience and not surprisingly, the results were unsatisfactory. Of the first batch of 25 cadets admitted to Sandhurst, ten failed to meet the requisite standard, two died, two resigned, one was deprived of his commission and ten passed. To remedy this, the Prince of Wales Royal Indian Military College was established on the 13th of March, 1922 for training native Indian cadets for an entry into the Sandhurst.
In the meantime, the first measure taken by the British government to "Indianise" the army - the Eight Unit Scheme of Indianisation - was announced on 17 February 1923. Indian proposals of faster induction were rejected and equally unrealistic timeplans of over 40 years with restricted kinds of commissionwere suggested. Finally, only eight units of the of British Indian Army were accepted by the British for Indianisation - only 5 infantry battalions out of 104, two cavalry regiments out of 21 and one pioneer battalion out of seven. They were to be reorganised on the British Army
model, with King's Commissioned Indian Officer
s at every officer level and Indian Warrant Officer
s replacing Viceroy's Commissioned Officer
s. The eight units selected were:
Of these eight battalions, the 2nd Battalion, 1st Madras Pioneers was disbanded in 1933 for economic reasons. Another eight units would follow after ten years for "Indianisation", one of which was the wartime 8th Battalion, 19th Hyderabad Regiment, today the 4th Battalion, the Kumaon Regiment
in the Indian Army.
Indianisation was considered a failure by the Indians due to the refusal of the British Government to increase the extremely slow rate of induction and the reluctance of the British to accept the Indian officers on an equal footing both professionally and socially. The scheme was suspended at the outbreak of the Second World War
, at which point only a handful of military units had been Indianised. The process was never reintroduced, as the wartime influx of Emergency Commissioned Officers were posted in all units. In 1947 India became independent and Indian officers immediately started to fill senior appointments with accelerated promotion.
Deputy Superintendent
Deputy superintendent, or deputy superintendent of police , was a rank used by police forces of the British Empire. In some territories it was called Deputy District Superintendent of police ....
was introduced to prepare Indian officers for promotion to higher rank. In the armed forces, the process referred to the replacement of British officers by Indians. The progress was slow and unsatisfactory to to the Indian nationalist politicians, however events, mainly World War II and Independence shortly after, overtook the program.
British Indian Army
It was announced in 1918 that the King's Commission would be opened to Indians for whom ten places would be reserved in the Royal Military Academy, SandhurstRoyal Military Academy Sandhurst
The Royal Military Academy Sandhurst , commonly known simply as Sandhurst, is a British Army officer initial training centre located in Sandhurst, Berkshire, England...
to be trained as officers of the British Indian Army. There was great disquiet amoingst the British who disliked the idea of serving under native officers; others felt that without good breeding, public school exposure and sufficient suitable training, Indians would not become good officers and would neither be able to lead or be accepted by the native troops. There was a firm belief amongst the British officers and the Government that only the public school system could provide the right kind of officer and that too only from proper stock.
The Sandhurst training directly pitted Indian boys in conditions alien to their experience, upbringing and experience and not surprisingly, the results were unsatisfactory. Of the first batch of 25 cadets admitted to Sandhurst, ten failed to meet the requisite standard, two died, two resigned, one was deprived of his commission and ten passed. To remedy this, the Prince of Wales Royal Indian Military College was established on the 13th of March, 1922 for training native Indian cadets for an entry into the Sandhurst.
In the meantime, the first measure taken by the British government to "Indianise" the army - the Eight Unit Scheme of Indianisation - was announced on 17 February 1923. Indian proposals of faster induction were rejected and equally unrealistic timeplans of over 40 years with restricted kinds of commissionwere suggested. Finally, only eight units of the of British Indian Army were accepted by the British for Indianisation - only 5 infantry battalions out of 104, two cavalry regiments out of 21 and one pioneer battalion out of seven. They were to be reorganised on the British Army
British Army
The British Army is the land warfare branch of Her Majesty's Armed Forces in the United Kingdom. It came into being with the unification of the Kingdom of England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. The new British Army incorporated Regiments that had already existed in England...
model, with King's Commissioned Indian Officer
King's Commissioned Indian Officer
A king's commissioned Indian officer was an Indian officer of the British Indian Army who held a full king's commission after training at the Royal Military College, Sandhurst, as opposed to the Indian commissioned officers , who were trained at the Indian Military Academy at Dehra Dun, and the...
s at every officer level and Indian Warrant Officer
Warrant Officer
A warrant officer is an officer in a military organization who is designated an officer by a warrant, as distinguished from a commissioned officer who is designated an officer by a commission, or from non-commissioned officer who is designated an officer by virtue of seniority.The rank was first...
s replacing Viceroy's Commissioned Officer
Viceroy's Commissioned Officer
A viceroy's commissioned officer was a senior Indian member of the British Indian Army. VCOs were senior in rank to warrant officers in the British Army, and held a commission issued by the viceroy...
s. The eight units selected were:
- 7th Light Cavalry7th Light CavalryThe 7th Light Cavalry, was a regular army cavalry regiment in the British Indian Army which first came into British service with the East India Company and went on to serve on the North West Frontier and in World War I and World War II.-Formation:...
. - 16th Light Cavalry16th Light CavalryThe 16th Light Cavalry is a regiment of the Armoured Corps, a primary combat arm of the Indian Army. Prior to India gaining independence from the British in 1947, it was a regular cavalry regiment of the British Indian Army...
. - 2nd Battalion, 1st Punjab Regiment66th PunjabisThe 66th Punjabis was an infantry regiment of the British Indian Army. It was raised in 1761 as the 7th Battalion of Coast Sepoys. It was designated as the 66th Punjabis in 1903 and became 2nd Battalion 1st Punjab Regiment in 1922...
. - 5th (Royal) Battalion, 5th Mahratta Light Infantry117th MahrattasThe 117th Mahrattas were an infantry regiment of the British Indian Army. The regiment traces their origins to 1800, when they were raised as the Bombay Fencible Regiment....
. - 1st Battalion, 7th Rajput Regiment2nd Queen Victoria's Own Rajput Light InfantryThe 2nd Queen Victoria's Own Rajput Light Infantry, commonly shortened to 2nd Rajputs, was a regiment of the British Indian Army, with an origin in 1798 and amalgamated with five other Rajput regiments in 1922.-History:...
- 1st Battalion, 14th Punjab Regiment19th PunjabisThe 19th Punjabis was an infantry regiment of the British Indian Army. It was raised in 1857, as the 7th Regiment of Punjab Infantry. It was designated as the 19th Punjabis in 1903 and became 1st Battalion 14th Punjab Regiment in 1922...
. - 4th Battalion, 19th Hyderabad Regiment98th InfantryThe 98th Infantry were an infantry regiment of the British Indian Army. They could trace their origins to 1788, when they were raised as the 1st Battalion of the Ellichpur Brigade for the Princely state of Hyderabad...
. - 2nd Battalion, 1st Madras Pioneers64th PioneersThe 64th Pioneers was a infantry regiment of the British Indian Army. They could trace their origins to 1758, when they were the 5th Battalion Coast Sepoys...
.
Of these eight battalions, the 2nd Battalion, 1st Madras Pioneers was disbanded in 1933 for economic reasons. Another eight units would follow after ten years for "Indianisation", one of which was the wartime 8th Battalion, 19th Hyderabad Regiment, today the 4th Battalion, the Kumaon Regiment
Kumaon Regiment
The Kumaon Regiment is one of the most decorated regiments of the Indian Army. The regiment traces its origins to the 18th century and has fought in every major campaign of the British Indian Army and the Indian Army, including the two world wars...
in the Indian Army.
Indianisation was considered a failure by the Indians due to the refusal of the British Government to increase the extremely slow rate of induction and the reluctance of the British to accept the Indian officers on an equal footing both professionally and socially. The scheme was suspended at the outbreak of the Second World War
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, at which point only a handful of military units had been Indianised. The process was never reintroduced, as the wartime influx of Emergency Commissioned Officers were posted in all units. In 1947 India became independent and Indian officers immediately started to fill senior appointments with accelerated promotion.