69 Medium Regiment (India)

69 Medium Regiment is part of the Regiment of Artillery of the Indian Army.

69 Medium Regiment
Active1963 – present
Country India
AllegianceIndia
Branch Indian Army
Type Artillery
SizeRegiment
Nickname(s)69 Very Fine
Motto(s)Sarvatra, Izzat-O-Iqbal
(Everywhere with Honour and Glory).
ColorsRed & Navy Blue
Anniversaries1 February – Raising Day
Insignia
Abbreviation69 Med Regt

Formation

The regiment was raised on 1 February 1963 at Jalandhar Cantonment as 69 Field Regiment. The first commanding officer was Lieutenant Colonel P K H Chand. The regiment was subsequently converted to a medium regiment in April 2010.[1]

Operations

The regiment has taken part in the following operations[1] –

Indo-Pakistani War of 1965

The regiment took part in Operation Ablaze and Operation Riddle. It was part of 14 Infantry Division and saw action in Punjab.[2]

Nathu La clashes

The regiment provided effective artillery fire during the clashes with the Chinese in 1967. The gun area of the unit was visited by the then prime minister, Mrs Indira Gandhi in May 1968 following the Nathu La operations.

Indo-Pakistani War of 1971

The regiment was part of 54 Artillery Brigade of 54 Infantry Division. It was deployed in the western sector around Samba during Operation Cactus Lily.[3][4]

It won the following gallantry awards –

  • Sena Medal – Captain Madan Mohan Sharmrao Gadagkar, Captain Asit Chaudhuri[5][6]
  • Mentioned in dispatches – Major Gopal Kartic, Captain Mela Ram Sharma, Subedar Ramchand Shinde, Lance Naik Kalla Venkata Ratnam, Lance Naik Ram Bapu Pawar, Naik Sitaram Deshmukh[7][8][9][10]
Operation Blue Star

The regiment provided aid to the civil administration in maintaining law and order in Punjab during the operations in 1984 to flush out terrorists from the Golden Temple.

Operation Trident

The regiment was able to deploy in the western sector at a very short notice for the operations in 1987.

Operation Falcon

The regiment was deployed between 1987 and 1990 in the Eastern sector.

During this tenure, Captain (later Major General) Virender Kumar Yadav of the regiment was awarded the Shaurya Chakra for an act of bravery. On 11 November 1989, while travelling by train, he displayed conspicuous courage under grave threat to his own life and rescued many people when a large mob set fire to the North East Express at Phaphund.[11][12]

Operation Rakshak and Operation Vijay

The regiment has taken part in counter insurgency operations in Jammu and Kashmir and has successfully completed three tenures in the state (1994, 1999 and 2007). It was also mobilised as part of Operation Vijay.

Operation Parakram

The regiment was deployed in the Northern Command area during the standoff in 2001. It lost a young officer, Lieutenant Abhay Pareek on 10 June 2002.[13] On 31 July 2002, the regiment lost Captain Rapolu Veera Raja Reddy at Rajouri in anti-militancy operations.[14][15]

Honours and achievements

The regiment has been awarded the following awards[1] –

  • Shaurya Chakra – 1
  • Sena Medal – 3
  • Mentioned in dispatches - 6
  • COAS Commendation Cards – 3[16]
  • GOC-in-C Commendation Cards - 5

See also

List of artillery regiments of Indian Army

References
  1. "69 Medium Regiment Golden Jubilee APO postal cover". 2013-02-01. Retrieved 2022-03-07.
  2. Singh, Harbaksh (2012). War Despatches: Indo-Pak Conflict 1965. Lancer Publishers LLC. ISBN 978-8170621171.
  3. Singh, Jagjit (1994). Indian Gunners at War: The Western Front 1971. Spantech & Lancer. p. 131. ISBN 978-1897829554.
  4. Praval, K. C. (1976). Valour triumphs: a history of the Kumaon Regiment. Thomson Press. p. 343.
  5. "Gazette of India, No 10, page 286" (PDF). 1974-03-09. Retrieved 2022-03-08.
  6. Singh, Jodh; Khera, P.N. (1972). Indira's India. Indian School Supply Depot, Delhi. p. 457.
  7. "Gazette of India, No19, page 534" (PDF). 1974-05-11. Retrieved 2022-03-08.
  8. "Gazette of India, No19, page 536" (PDF). 1974-05-11. Retrieved 2022-03-08.
  9. "Gazette of India, No 36" (PDF). 1972-09-02. Retrieved 2022-03-08.
  10. Singh, Jagjit (1994). Indian Gunners at War: The Western Front 1971. Spantech & Lancer. p. 134. ISBN 978-1897829554.
  11. "Captain Virender Kumar Yadav". Retrieved 2022-03-07.
  12. "Gazette of India, No 17, page 379" (PDF). 1991-04-27. Retrieved 2022-03-09.
  13. "Lieutenant Abhay Pareek". Retrieved 2022-03-07.
  14. "Captain Rapolu Veera Raja Reddy". 2016-07-31. Retrieved 2022-03-07.
  15. "Army captain's death in Rajouri leaves family shattered". 2002-08-02. Retrieved 2022-03-07.
  16. "COAS Commendation Card" (PDF). 2021-01-15. Retrieved 2022-03-09.
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