11 Gorkha Rifles

11th Gorkha Rifles
Cap badge of 11 Gorkha Rifles
Active	1918-1922, 1948 - present
Country	British India 1918-1922 India 1948 – present
Allegiance	India
Branch	British Indian Army  Indian Army
Type	Rifles
Role	Light Infantry
Size	6 Battalions
Regimental Centre	Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh
Nickname(s)	Kirant
Motto(s)	Yatraham Vijayastatra (The Metaphor for Victory)
War Cry	Jai Mahakali, Ayo Gorkhali (Victory to Mahakali, The Gorkhas Are Here)
Equipment	Kargil 1999
Engagements	Sinai and Palestine campaign
Decorations	1 Param Vir Chakra 1 Victoria Cross 6Military Crosses 3Ashoka Chakras 1Padma Bhushan 7 Param Vishist Seva Medals 2 Maha Vir Chakras 9 Ati Vishist Seva Medals 11 Vir Chakras 5 Shaurya Chakras 35 Sena Medals 14 Vishisht Seva Medals 18 Mentioned-in-Despatches
Battle honours	Shingo River, Bogra and Batalik
Commanders
Ceremonial chief	Colonel of the Regiment
Colonel of the Regiment	Lt Gen G M Nair
Notable commanders	General GG Bavoor, General Bipin Rawat, Lt General FT Dias, Lt General Sushil Kumar, Lt General AK Kashyap, Lt. General L S Rawat, Lt. General R D Hira, Lt. General BK Bopanna, Lt General JBS Yadava, Brig. K. N. Nair, Brig Abjeet Mamik, Lt Gen P K Rampal, Maj General KVS Lalotra, Lt Gen B J Gupta, Brig. Ajay Chaudhari, Maj.Gen Rakesh Sharma, Brig A.L Chavan, Brig Shokin Chauhan, Maj. Gen Anil Chauhan, Brig YVK Mohan, Brig AK Singh, Brig A Solankey, Brig MMS Dhanoa.
Insignia
Regimental Insignia	A pair of crossed Khukris with the Roman numeral XI in-between

The 11 Gorkha Rifles is a Gorkha regiment of the Indian Army comprising Gurkha soldiers of Nepalese origin that was re-raised after independence. The regiment consists of primarily the Rais, Limbus and Tamang people of Eastern Nepal - mainly from Taplejung, Panchthar, Sankhuwasabha and Dhankuta District and also the Indian Nepalese/Gorkhas and Bhutias from Darjeeling District, West Bengal and Sikkim. Though it is considered to be the youngest of the Gorkha Regiments it has a lineage which is as old as the history of the 7th Gurkhas and 10th Gurkhas.

The 11 Gurkhas was raised as an ad hoc unit in 1918 with troops and officers being drawn from the various Gurkha Regiments. This regiment saw service in both Palestine and Mesopotamia at the end of the First World War, as well as during the Third Afghan War in 1919, before being disbanded in 1922 and the troops being reverted to their original units. There were no separate insignias authorized for this regiment and the personnel wore the badges of distinction of their parent units, though there have been instances where unofficial badges were made and worn by some personnel.

Following India's independence in 1947, the Gurkha regiments of the British Indian Army were divided between the new Indian Army and the British Army. A referendum was held among the soldiers of the four regiments (2nd, 6th, 7th and 10th Gurkhas) that would transfer to the British as to whether they wished to join the British Army, as the decision to do so was made entirely voluntary. Of the four regiments one battalion (4/2 GR) opted en masse to join the Indian Army and became part of the 8th Gurkha Rifles as their 5th Battalion and is presently on their strength as 5/8 GR. In the event, large numbers of men from the 7th Gurkha Rifles and the 10th Gurkha Rifles, which recruited predominantly from Eastern Nepal, opted to join the Indian Army as against the British Army to whom their regiments were allotted. So, in order to retain a contingent from this area of Nepal, the Indian Army made the decision to re-raise the 11th Gorkha Rifles. The 11 Gorkha Rifles was officially re-raised on 1 January 1948, with the regimental centres at Palampur and Santa Cruz, Mumbai the regimental centre was subsequently shifted to Jalapahar in Darjeeling, and then moved to Clement Town Dehra Dun for a brief period, and finally to Lucknow where it was firmly established. The regiment was raised predominantly with the manpower from the non-optees of the 7th Gurkha Rifles and the 10th Gurkha Rifles. As the regiment was raised by the Indian Army after independence, it was decided not to retain the honours and traditions of the first 11th Gurkha Rifles of the British Indian Army.