Territorial Army To Celebrate Raising Day

[ROUDRAM]

The 122 Infantry Battalion here, the lone Territorial Army unit in the State, will hold various functions to mark its 55th Raising Day on November 1 at the Wellesley Barracks here.
The jawans of the battalion, which has grown popular with activities in collaboration with the civilian authorities, will participate in a host of programmes concluding on November 1 to mark the occasion.
Already, since early October, various activities are being conducted in connection with the 62nd anniversary of the raising of the Territorial Army. A blood donation camp and a bicycle expedition in Kannur and Kozhikode districts are among the activities completed.
Even as the battalion is set to celebrate its Raising Day with sports and cultural programmes, four of its companies have been deployed in various parts of Jammu and Kashmir. The Raising Day celebration is an occasion for the jawans to remember Nayak Anil Kumar and Havildar Vijayan of the battalion killed in action against terrorists.
The battalion, nicknamed Kannur Terriers, has a special standing in the history of the Territorial Army, whose origins can be traced back to 1857, when a volunteer force has been raised from among the British and Anglo-Indians for local defence. The Territorial Army, in its present form, was inaugurated by the then Governor General of the nation, C. Rajagopalachari, in October 1949.
A descendant of the erstwhile Malabar Battalions, the 122 Infantry Battalion was initially raised at Ambala in 1949 as the 51 Light Armed Regiment, which was re-designated and affiliated to the Punjab Regiment in 1956. Ten years later, the battalion was re-affiliated to the Madras Regiment and stationed in Malappuram till it moved to the barracks here in 1979.
The battalion actively participated in the operation against the Chinese in 1962 and in the wars against Pakistan in 1965 and 1971 and also formed part of the Indian Peace Keeping Force in Sri Lanka. The force has been drafted for duties in the Kashmir Valley. The battalion was adjudged the best infantry battalion in the country and has won the Chief of Army Staff Silver Trophy thrice in succession since 1986-87.

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