Who are the Gurkhas?

Gurkhas have been fighting as part of the British Army for almost 200 years, but who are these fearsome Nepalese fighters? "Better to die than be a coward" is the motto of the world-famous Nepalese Gurkha soldiers who are an integral part of the British Army. They still carry into battle their traditional weapon - an 18-inch long curved knife known as the kukri. In times past, it was said that once a kukri was drawn in battle, it had to "taste blood" - if not, its owner had to cut himself before returning it to its sheath. Now, the Gurkhas say, it is used mainly for cooking.

The potential of these warriors was first realised by the British at the height of their empire-building in the last century.

Bravest of the brave, most generous of the generous, never had a country more faithful friends than you - Sir Ralph Turner MC, 3rd Queen Alexandra's Own Gurkha Rifles, 1931

After suffering heavy casualties in the invasion of Nepal, the British East India Company signed a hasty peace deal in 1815, which also allowed it to recruit from the ranks of the former enemy. Following the partition of India in 1947, an agreement between Nepal, India and Britain meant four Gurkha regiments from the Indian army were transferred to the British Army, eventually becoming the Gurkha Brigade. Since then, the Gurkhas have loyally fought for the British all over the world, winning 13 Victoria Crosses between them. More than 200,000 fought in the two world wars and in the past 50 years, they have served in Hong Kong, Malaya, Borneo, Cyprus, the Falklands, Kosovo and Afghanistan.

They serve in a variety of roles, mainly in the infantry but with significant numbers of engineers, logisticians and signals specialists. They keep to their Nepalese customs and beliefs, and the brigade follows religious festivals such as Dashain, in which - in Nepal, not the UK - goats and buffaloes are sacrificed. But their numbers have been sharply reduced from a World War II peak of 112,000 men, and now stand at about 3,500.

The Gurkhas are now based at Church Crookham, Hampshire - but they do not become British citizens. The soldiers are still selected from young men living in the hills of Nepal - with about 28,000 youths tackling the selection procedure for just over 200 places each year. If there was a minute's silence for every Gurkha casualty from World War II alone, we would have to keep quiet for two weeks Gurkha Welfare Trust..

The selection process has been described as one of the toughest in the world and is fiercely contested. Young hopefuls have to run uphill for 40 minutes carrying a wicker basket on their back filled with rocks weighing 70lbs. After the Gurkhas have served their time in the Army - a maximum of 30 years, and a minimum of 15 years to secure a pension - they are discharged back in Nepal. The MoD says ex-Gurkhas are considerably better off in comparative terms than British ex-servicemen living in the UK.

But several Gurkhas have been involved in recent battles with the MoD to receive the same pension, pay and conditions as other British soldiers.

- http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/2786991.stm

is it true that they only choose from certain ethnic groups who are these ethnic groups?

मैले थाहा पाएको मेरा 'बाहुन' र खत्री नातागोताहरु सबैले भारतीय सेनामा जागीर गर्दा फलानो 'बहादुर 'थापा' वा 'मगर' थर राखेका थिए।

awsom...

wish the Gorkhas in India would get same kind of respect and recognization as well.

Birbhadra, definitely not from the balabhadra kunwara ethnic group.

Risani maf hosh Birbhadra for bringing all those ethnicity on this thread.

They used to select from, as you said, certain ethnic groups because of their guru pujari eklabya character, but few years onwards, all ethnic groups are welcome on applying as a gurkha (or better say gorkhali). Now you can meet mahendra shah, girija nepal, madhav koirala, pashupati shrestha, balabhadra kunwara and all the jhilkays of as you said certain ethnic groups.

Hoina ta Lahure dai?

Everytime it amuses me, whenever I read something related to British-Nepalese Army, the words "GURKHA" and "KUKRI" goes hand on hand.

Kukri= stooped
Gurkha= eat gudh (you know that yellowish-brownish molasses of sugarcanes???)

hou bhai hou aba bhai le bhanesi dai le kyana kuro kat thiyo ki kaso hau kancho?

RSVP bheko le tuuu reply garya hai, hehehe

Hoina jhilkay Kancho lay matrai Guru pujari Eklabya bhasa bolcha bhaneko ta babaal bhayo- chahinay jo aba Birbhadra kunwara lay pani po Guru pujari Eklabya bhasa bolna sikaychan.

Kay ho? Struggle for existence ho ki kaso? Ki survival of the flexible ho?

Quite a bit of Gurkha mania going on in Sajha eh! I am chuffed! :)

Ignitor,

Thanks for starting the thread. I might perhaps furnish/update a few additional details in the BBC excerpt - it appears to be dated. Hereunder:

The current Gurkha strength: around 3400.

"The Gurkhas are now based at Church Crookham, Hampshire"
Wrong. The UK based infantry battalion is now based at Folkestone, near Dover in the south east of England. We also have our Corps arms (Engineers, Signallers and Logisticians) as well as a whole raft of various sub-units and detachments, widely interspersed in-country. Then there's one infantry battalion deployed permanently in the Far East (Brunei).

"but they do not become British citizens"
Wrong. They now can, provided they've completed a period of five years in the Crown Service or after they have retired, in common with the rules that apply to those from Commonwealth countries.

"They serve in a variety of roles, mainly in the infantry but with significant numbers of engineers, logisticians and signals specialists."
Yes indeed. Their role has never been this diverse and demanding but one that is only timely, given the ever-evolving world conflict scenarios and the concomitant requirement to adapt to changes these bring about. Therein lies their unique trait: flexibility, the main raison d'etre that underpins their continued presence in the British Armed Forces as its integral part. Talking about roles, Gurkhas have of late served in a variety of non-traditional roles, often independently, from arduous field assignments that demand technical expertise/qualifications or a degree in a related field to even as far as flying (pilots) in Army Air Corps.

"They keep to their Nepalese customs and beliefs, and the brigade follows religious festivals such as Dashain"
Yes, a big part of the Gurkha life. It is during these occasions that the closeness between them is fostered more solidly - all very vital part of bonding/camaraderie but one that also helps them feel homesickness less acutely.

*********************
Birbhadra,

"Is it true that they only choose from certain ethnic groups who are these ethnic groups?"
No, that's not the case. Anyone can join as long as he is a Nepali citizen, irrespective of cast/creed. Equal Opportunity and Diversity, you see - the big corporate catch word! However, you'll have to fulfil several criteria/standards before they can accept you as a potential Gurkha. Some of these are:

(a) Health - self-explanatory.

(b) Physical fitness standard - excellent, tested in a series of activities such as running including a gruelling Doko race on a near-vertical track that runs along the shoulder and the spur of a steep hill.

(c) Education - the minimum standard is a good pass in SLC or Plus 2; I heard from my sources that the selectees this year were almost all SLC-passed with 1st Div. Changing times, surely.

********************
RSVP,

"Hoina ta Lahure dai?"
I'm assuming, that was addressed to me, ho? Some amusing comments.


Have a cracking weekend all.
Carpe diem