The Imperial Service Troops and Indian States Forces (Part II)

Mr A N McClenaghan

In May 1939, with the threat of war looming ever larger, a committee set up by the Government of India decided to make good more than three years deficiencies in arms and equipment to the States Forces. The committee also decided to refund money expended by States on the purchase of arms but at the same time it was decided to discontinue the 1920 scheme and introduce a new 1939 scheme. The main objectives of this new scheme, which came into effect on 1 December 1939, were :-

The categorisation changes were:

Certain conditions were applied to the allocation of units to the three new categories. FSUs had to be of complete battalion strength and conform to adequate standards of efficiency. GSUs had to approximate closely to FSUs while SSUs had to be no smaller than a squadron of cavalry or a company of infantry and had to maintain a high standard of efficiency. FSUs were granted a free initial issue of arms and associated equipment plus replacement and repair of arms. GSUs and SSUs were issued with arms and equipment at cost price.

A Crown representative had the right to accept or refuse a State into the scheme and to veto the raising of new units. At the same time he could transfer a unit from one category to another or withdraw it from the scheme altogether.

Further concessions of the 1939 scheme included the free distribution of large numbers of horses from Indian Cavalry regiments, the opening of Kitchener College, Nowgong, and Staff College, Quetta, to personnel of the State Forces, and, later in the war, the allocation of vacancies at various schools which had been established for training officers for the war, such as the Officers Training Schools at Mhow and Belgaum, and the Junior Commanders Course at Poona.

The original announcement of the 1939 scheme was made to the States in early August 1939 and they were asked to signify their acceptance within two months. By November 1939 thirty three States had accepted the new scheme and in the end only Bhopal, Cutch, Dholpur, Dhar and Rewa did not join it. Under a rather complicated formula these States did, however, receive an initial free issue of arms as laid down under the original 1920 scheme.

As with the First World War, so with the commencement of the Second World War virtually all the rulers offered their State Forces for employment and forty units were incorporated into the Indian State Forces (ISF) order of battle. Within a very short time twenty of the units were employed outside of their State territories and by the end of the war State Forces had served with distinction in every theatre of operation, with a total strength of 50,290. Again, as with the First World War, several State units were combined to form composite units for the duration of the war. For instance, a composite ISF Demonstration Company for the infantry schools at Saugor was formed from one platoon each from Alwar, Bikaner, Udaipur and Jaipur. The unit assembled at Jaipur in April 1943 and moved to Saugor the following month. Similarly, an ISF Central Sappers and Miners Training Battalion was formed at Roorkee in April 1943 by amalgamating the existing State training units from Malerkotla, Mandi, Faridkot, Sirmur, Tehri Garhwal and Suket. Others were:

The States Forces, as with other elements of the Indian Army, faced additional difficulties in Malaya and Burma with conflicting calls upon their loyalty. Some joined the INA; others such as Lieutenant Colonel Gurbaksh Singh, DSO, OBE, second in command of the Jind Infantry, provided a powerful example of resisting the Japanese. After the war he became Commanding Officer of the unit. His DSO and OBE were awarded for war service. The ISF officer to receive the highest decoration among State Forces personnel for war service, Captain MK Durrani of the Bahawalpur Infantry, was awarded the George Cross for his part in countering the efforts of the Japanese. He was tortured by them for many days but refused to divulge the information they wanted.

As the war came to an end so the States Forces units began to return to their home States. Some were diverted to deal with a different sort of invasion, locusts, while others were sent to Hong Kong to form part of 150 Indian Infantry Brigade, which drew its entire infantry complement from States Forces.

Again, as with the First World War, so the onset of the Second World War led to a realisation that India’s contribution to the war effort would be greatly expanded. Active Indian Army units were made available for front line duties and replaced by specially raised garrison battalions and companies to take over guard duties at the various military and civil centres that were considered to be at risk. Transport companies were in short supply, particularly in the Middle East where convoys of supplies to Russia were being organised. As the tempo of war increased the States were asked to provide assistance by helping to raise such units for the Indian Army from within the States. This policy enabled the smaller States Forces to make a positive contribution to the war effort where otherwise their size and resources might have excluded them from active service

In addition, a number of Indian States Forces units, such as the Kashmir artillery units, and the infantry companies of Baria and Dhrangadhra, were integrated into the Indian Army. Other States, such as Ratlam and Bhavnagar, contributed by transferring trained men from their existing Indian States Forces units.

The units raised were:

At the end of the war all units were disbanded, the men being absorbed back into the ISF or discharged. The contribution made by the States equated to almost six battalions of infantry, four engineering companies and 12 transport companies, in addition to recruits provided as individuals for the Indian Army. Additionally, many non-combatants were enrolled from the States and, in the Second World War, large numbers were sent to the Burma Front.

Before we move to the concluding phase of this account, a brief look at some statistics as they relate to First and Second World War activities:

Casualties

And so we reach the concluding period of the history of the Imperial Service Troops (IST)/ISF. On 3 June 1947 Lord Mountbatten announced the British plan to relinquish power to India and Pakistan. A States Department was established with two Secretaries in charge, one from Congress and one from the Muslim League, and eventually Instruments of Accession were drawn up for those States remaining within India. A common Standstill Agreement was also drawn up, specifying that administrative arrangements of common concern currently existing between the Crown and the States would continue until new arrangements could be made. The ‘defence’ aspect of the Instruments of Accession did not, however, include the Indian States Forces. At the time of partition there were in excess of 75,000 all ranks in the ISF and their future soon began to receive consideration, especially within India which inherited the vast majority of them. In 1949 preliminary agreements were reached on the integration of the States Forces. The first of these was reached on 7 April followed, on 26-27 July, by a meeting of the Rajpramukhs of the Unions, the Premiers of the Travancore-Cochin Union and of Mysore, and Indian Government officials. Meanwhile, as announced on 24 June, the forces of eleven merged States, including Baroda, Kolhapur and Rajpipla, a total of 5,000 men, had already been integrated with those of the Indian Army.

States which had either merged into neighbouring provinces, or whose administration was taken over by the central government, were fairly easy to deal with since they had transferred their full powers to the Government of India. Even so, the Indian Army could only absorb so many ISF personnel. Some of the units were unsuitable for incorporation into the Indian Army while some of the soldiers did not wish it. But there were dangers in demobilising so many men at once so, after Independence, the Government of India allowed the States Forces to remain in their original locations and on the same terms of service that they had previously enjoyed. Gradually those unfit or unwilling to merge into the Indian Army were mustered out.

Hyderabad, which had refused to accede on Independence, maintained the largest number of States Forces. Civil unrest grew in the first year of independence, negotiations with India broke down and finally the Government of India took control of the administration of the State through a military operation, Operation POLO, which began on 13 September 1948 and ended four days later. The State Forces of Hyderabad put up some stiff resistance at the start of the operation but soon crumbled in the face of the overwhelming superiority of the Indian Army. Following the action their numbers were progressively reduced and reorganized and, on 1 April 1950, they were brought under the complete control of the Indian Army.

Also on 1 April 1950 the Government of India took over control of the States Forces of the Travancore-Cochin Union and of Mysore, responsibility for which had passed after independence from the rulers to the relevant State ministries.

In the case of Unions other than Travancore-Cochin the problems faced were rather more difficult. The Rajpramukh of each Union was authorised to raise, maintain and administer the States Forces, subject to Government or Presidential decree, the Forces to be paid for from Union revenues. It was decided to implement integration of these troops on a gradual basis but in the meantime they were to be subject to a number of controls. These were:

In the event, financial considerations meant that the arrangements had to be curtailed. After further discussion, all States Forces were completely taken over by the Government of India and elements became a part of the Indian Army with effect from 
1 April 1951.

INDIAN ARMY

    Artillery
 

    Engineers
 

    Infantry
 

I have referred several times to the pitfalls for the historian in studying this subject, largely because original records were inadequate, or have since been lost or destroyed. For example, there are only two copies of the Indian States Forces Army List in the National Archives in Delhi – one for 1942 and one for 1948. There are none here in the USI. But this is not to imply that the history of these forces has been totally ignored. Indeed, I am aware of work that has been done to trace the activities of military forces maintained by States as far back as the fifteenth century, though whether one can argue for the inclusion of “battle honours” from such times to be carried forward to the ISF units as I have described them today, and beyond into their incorporated Indian Army units, is another matter. But I would argue that there is more work to be done. Sadly, though inevitably, however, many of those who could have contributed from first hand knowledge to the compilation of such a history are no longer with us, and so there remain the “pitfalls” to which I have alluded.

Mr AN McClenaghan is Secretary and Editor of the Indian Military Historical Society.