Eastern Command turns 94

KOLKATA : From Nainital, Lucknow and Bareilly to Kolkata via Ranchi, it has been a long journey for the Eastern Command over the last 94 years. During this journey, it sent Chindits into Burma to stem the advance of the Japanese towards India, controlled the 1971 Indo-Pak War in the east that facilitated the creation of Bangladesh and continues to combat insurgency in the North East. The Eastern Command, the biggest operational command of the Indian Army, turned 94 on Saturday.

The celebrations started with Lt Gen MMS Rai laying a wreath at Vijay Smarak, Fort William, in honour of those who laid down their lives for the cause of the nation. "Eastern Command will continue to strive for unparalleled professional competence to ensure the highest standards of operational readiness," the Army commander said.

The history of the Eastern Command dates back to 1895 when the Bengal Presidency Army was abolished. It was Gen Viscount Kitchener's reforms till World War I that gave the command its military character. The command was formed on November 1, 1920, with its summer headquarters in Nainital and winter headquarters in Lucknow. Gen Sir H Hudson was its first commander and its territorial jurisdiction extended across Delhi, UP, Bengal, Bihar, Odisha and Assam. On January 1, 1939, Meerut, Lucknow, Bengal, Assam and Delhi military districts came under Eastern Command. The winter headquarters moved to Bareilly.

In April 1942, the command was designated as Eastern Army and its headquarters moved to Barrackpore to prosecute efforts during World War II. Its formations, however, were forced to affect the longest tactical retreat (1500 kms) through Malaya and Burma against superior Japanese forces. In June 1942, plans were prepared to limit Japanese advance at Imphal and Kohima and to recover Burma, thereby handing the Japanese their biggest ever defeat in World War II.

"The command then consisted of 4 Corps (Headquarters at Imphal) with 17 and 23 Indian Division, 33 Corps (Headquarters at Arakan) with 14 and 26 Indian Division, 70 British Division and 50 Indian Tank Brigade in reserve. In February 1943, the first 'Chindit' operations were mounted in Burma by 77 Indian Infantry Brigade (Chindits) under Brigadier Orde Wingate. The force was maintained wholly by air. At the time of Independence, Eastern Command was located in Ranchi. In 1955, it moved back to Lucknow, and eight years later to Fort William in Kolkata. The Eastern Command theatre consists of three distinct geographical regions, the mountainous sectors of Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh in the north, the jungle-clad hill tracts of Nagaland, Manipur, Mizoram, Tripura and Meghalaya in the east and the south, and the plains of Assam and Bengal," a senior officer said.

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