Infantry regiment of the Bangladesh Army
Military unit
The East Bengal Regiment (Bengali: ইস্ট বেঙ্গল রেজিমেন্ট) is an infantry regiment of the Bangladesh Army. It was founded by Major Abdul Gani. [1]
History
The East Bengal Regiment was formed on 15 February 1948, following the Partition of India into the Dominion of Pakistan and the Dominion of India in 1947. The core of the unit was made up of soldiers of the Bihar Regiment and the Bengal Pioneer Corps who had opted for Pakistan when partition divided the British Indian Army and the Pakistan Army was born. A shortfall of junior commissioned officers was made up from the Punjab Regiment until sufficient Bengali officers became available.[2] Two companies composed of Bengali Muslims were regimented in to the first training regiment in East Pakistan and was named the East Bengal Regiment under Lieutenant Colonel V. J. E. Patterson as Commanding Officer and Major Abdul Waheed Choudhury as Officer Commanding (O.C.).[3] Between 1948 and 1965, a total of eight battalions were raised. The East Bengal Regiment was primarily composed of Bengali men from East Pakistan.[4]
1965 Indo-Pakistan War
At the end of the Indo-Pakistan War in 1965, a new battalion called the Lucky Tigers of the 7th East Bengal Regiment was created. The creation of the battalion was not finished until 1966.[5] The East Bengal regiment soldiers defended Lahore, West Pakistan during the war. In which they were awarded 12 gallantry awards, The East Bengal Regiment was also known for also causing heavy casualties on the Indian side when, East Bengal Regiment personnel faced them, it was not just East Bengal Regiment, Many Bengalis in the Pakistani Air Force were shooting down many Indian planes, like Saiful Azam who took 12 Missions and caused heavy damage to India, and captured one Indian soldier, and shot down 1 IAF aircraft and Muhammad Mahmood Alam who shot down 5 IAF aircraft.
[6]
History during the Bangladesh War of Independence
In March 1971, in response to a crackdown on local populace in East Pakistan, the five battalions of the East Bengal Regiment under the command of Major Ziaur Rahman revolted against the Pakistan Army. Members of the East Bengal Regiment across East Pakistan organized and initiated the Bangladesh War of Independence. The East Bengal Regiment formed the core of the independence struggle forces, which became known as the Bangladesh Forces. The structure and formation of the Bangladesh Forces during the Independence War of 1971 was determined at the Sector Commander's Conference that was held from 11 to 17 July 1971.[7]
Colonel M.A.G. Osmani (promoted to general after independence of Bangladesh) was the Commander-in-Chief of all Bangladesh Forces. Lieutenant Colonel M. A. Rab was appointed as the Chief of Army Staff and Squadron Leader M. Hamidullah Khan, was appointed Bangladesh Military Representative to coordinate guerilla training at the largest training camp of the war effort at Chakulia, Bihar, India. The decision of the formation of three separate brigades were formed with East Bengal battalions.[7]
The East Bengal Regiment battalions that participated in the war were as follows:
Z Force, commanded by Major Ziaur Rahman, consisted of 1st, 3rd and 8th East Bengal Regiment. These battalions were formed during May~June 1971 at Teldhala village of Tura, Meghalaya, in 1971 by Major Ziaur Rahman. These three battalions principally constituted the backbone of Bangladesh Forces Sector 11, later commanded for a brief stint (24 days) by Major Abu Taher and subsequently by Squadron Leader M. Hamidullah Khan from 3 November until 14 February. The main two battles fought in Bangladesh Forces Sector 11 was the Kamalpur battle (land attack), led by Major Zia and the Chilmari Battle (Amphibious attack (landing raid) led by Squadron Leader M. Hamidullah Khan.
K Force, commanded by Major Khaled Mosharraf was created with 4, 9 and 10 East Bengal.
S Force, under Major K M Shafiullah, was created in October 1971 and consisted of 2 and 11 East Bengal. Further units were raised to replace those that remained stranded in West Pakistan. Following the foundation of Bangladesh, these units formed the core of the new army. However, the 7th Battalion was incorporated as 44th Battalion, Frontier Force Regiment of the Pakistan Army, which led to the raising of the 10th Battalion in 1971.
Role
The East Bengal Regiment is the oldest infantry regiment of the Bangladesh Army. It's role is to engage and defeat an enemy in frontal combat, within a traditional infantry combat scenario. The regiment also aids the civilian government when called on and contributes regularly to Bangladesh's peacekeeping commitments overseas. Bangladesh is among the countries contributing troops to the United Nations.[8]
- UNOCI
- 10th East Bengal Regiment
- 13th East Bengal Regiment
- UNMIL
- 26th East Bengal Regiment
- MONUSCO
- 44th East Bengal Regiment
