Col NM Shankar (Retd) (Ranjit 1966-71) and Col Sanjay Kannoth (Ranjit 1987-1993) have carried out a marvellous interpretation of the Rimcollians historical accomplishments and have projected interesting facts which most will want to know. They have amassed some stimulating data in the chapter The Number Speak for Themselves… in the Centenary Book that will hit the shelves on 13 Mar 2022.
Did you know…..
· RIMC has produced 9 Military Chiefs in the Indian sub-continent, with 4 Chiefs of Army Staff and 2 Chiefs of Air Staff in India.
· At the time of independence, approximately three-fourths of the officers of the rank of Brigadier and above in the Indian Army were Rimcollians.
· We all know that Cadet HL Atal joined RIMC on 19 Feb 1922 and was allotted College No 1, but do we know, that Cadet Jayanta Kumar Sengupta of the 66th RIMC course was also awarded College No. 1 in 1959. There lies a story behind this oddity…. You got to read more in the book….
· Were you aware that, Appellation of RIMC has experienced Four shifts…
o 1922- Prince of Wales Royal Indian Military College.
o 1949- Prince of Wales Military College.
o 1955- Sainik School.
o 1959- Rashtriya Indian Military College.
o And the names we marginally escaped from include, Rashtriya Vir Kumar College and Rashtriya Sainik Vidyalaya.
· Interestingly, 4,351 young boys have joined RIMC in the past 100 years. The senior most Rimcollian was 1/ Rawlinson Cadet Hira Lal Atal and youngest Rimcollian today is 3094/R Cadet Chaitanya Pande.
· Post partition, 53rd Course commencing February 1948 was the largest course ever with 74 cadets and Zero intakes were taken in 132nd and 133rd courses.
· In 1956, of the 742 cadets at the Joint Services Wing, 74 were Rimcollians – a significant 10%!
· Fascinatingly, the First three Commandants of Indian Military Academy were indeed Rimcollians.
· RIMC sent a record 33 cadets to the 1st JSW Course in December 1948 which was surpassed only in May 2000, when 34 cadets joined the 104th NDA Course.
· Incidentally, IC-1, the first pass out from IMA is held by Maj Gen K Bhagwati Singh (105/Rawlinson).
· Astoundingly, Rimcollians have won the Gold Medal on 42, the Silver Medal on 29 and the Bronze medal on 22 occasions at the National Defence Academy, Khadakwasla with clean sweep of all three medals on Four occassions.
· Furthermore, 41 Rimcollians have won the coveted Sword of Honour at the IMA, the President’s Gold Medal has been awarded 36 times to Rimcollians and the Silver Medal 19 times. Rimcollians also have a Sword of Honour at OTA Chennai to their credit.
· In addition to six Chiefs for the country, the RIMC has produced eight Vice-Chiefs, 36 C-in-Cs and 22 PSOs in the three Services.
· The star rank offrs include six Chiefs, 68 Lt Gens & equivalent, 133 Rear Admirals & equivalent and 196 Air Commodores & equivalent.
· In the Hundred years of our existence, the illustrious ‘Rimcollian Families’ include the famous Sharmas, the Bewoors, the Bhagats and the Zakis who are famed as families.
· Incredibly, 73 Rimcollian fathers have sent their sons to the RIMC. 8 Rimcollians have sent Two sons each to RIMC.
· There are 145 sets of siblings over the past 100 years. There are nine families who sent three or more sons to RIMC. The largest number of brothers who have studied at the RIMC is a whopping seven. Many more interesting facts lie in the book…..
· Cadet Bharat Pal Singh 567/R and Cadet Girish Pal Singh 569/R were twins and had the honour to be Cadet Cane Orderlies to the President of India, Shri VV Giri for the Golden Jubilee ceremonial parade in 1972.
· The FirstParam Vir Chakra was conferred upon Major Som Nath Sharma (posthumously) (307/Rawlinson).
· The highest pre-independence gallantry award Victoria Cross was awarded to Lt Gen PS Bhagat (198/Rawlinson). Rimcollians have also been awarded 14 Military Cross, 2 Flying Cross.
· The data on gallantry awards include One MVC, 4 KC, 15 VrC, 8 SC, 84 SM, 21 Nao Sena Medal, 31 Vayu Sena Medal and 10 M-in-D.
· The distinguished awards tally comprises, 1 Padma Vibhushan, 5 Padma Bhushan, 2 SYSM, 63 PVSM, 2 UYSM, 92 AVSM, 13 YSM, 4 President’s Police and Fire Service Medal and 3 Arjuna Awards.
· Rimcollians who joined the Pakistan too excelled and were awarded:
305/Rawlinson | Malik Nur Khan | Hilal - e - Jurat | (1934-40, Raw) |
382/Rawlinson | Mohammad Mumtaz Khan | Hilal - e - Jurat | (1938-43, Raw) |
305/Rawlinson | Malik Nur Khan | Hilal - e - Shujaat | (1934-40, Raw) |
266/Rawlinson | Mohammad Asghar Khan | Hilal - e - Pakistan | (1933-37, Raw) |
266/Rawlinson | Mohammad Asghar Khan | Hilal - e - Quaid - I - Azam | (1933-37, Raw) |
599/Kitchener | Ahmad Kamal Khan | Hilal - e - Imtiaz | (1944-47, Kit) |
648/Kitchener | Mohammad Alam Jan Khan Mahsud | Hilal - e - Imtiaz | (1946-49, Kit) |
382/Rawlinson | Mohammad Mumtaz Khan | Sitara - e - Jurat | (1938-43, Raw) |
417/Rawlinson | Tariq Mohammad Mir | Sitara - e - Imtiaz | (1940-46, Raw) |
517/Roberts | Mian Sadruddin | Sitara - e - Imtiaz | (1942-47, Rob) |
599/Kitchener | Ahmad Kamal Khan | Sitara - e - Imtiaz | (1944-47, Kit) |
633/Kitchener | Sheikh Mohammad Ilyas | Sitara - e - Imtiaz | (1946-47, Kit) |
648/Kitchener | Mohammad Alam Jan Khan Mahsud | Sitara - e - Imtiaz | (1946-49, Kit) |
599/Kitchener | Ahmad Kamal Khan | Sitara - e - Basalat | (1944-47, Kit) |
648/Kitchener | Mohammad Alam Jan Khan Mahsud | Sitara - e - Basalat | (1946-49, Kit) |
517/Roberts | Mian Sadruddin | Tamgha - I - Basalat | (1942-47, Rob) |
633/Kitchener | Sheikh Mohammad Ilyas | Tamgha - I - Basalat | (1946-47, Kit) |
417/Rawlinson | Tariq Mohammad Mir | Tamgha - I - Pakistan | (1940-46, Raw) |
417/Rawlinson | Tariq Mohammad Mir | Nishan - e - Humayun | (1940-46, Raw) |
| | | |
Deduction
Rimcollian is one of the most diverse representation of the country with his religion, caste, language, background having no bars. The esprit de corps developed in these nascent years at RIMC, helps them shape themselves physically, build moral fibre, hone their intellectual competences and infuse it with abundant knowledge unparallel elsewhere. Undeniably, at the culmination of this training at RIMC, as the figures divulge, the creation is of a confident, seasoned, young man personifying the RIMC’s slogan of “Bal Vivek.”
Comments