Regiment of Artillery celebrates 193rd Gunners Day

The Regiment of Artillery of the Indian Army celebrates the 193rd Gunners Day on Today (September 28), which is observed to mark the raising of Five (Bombay) Mountain Battery equipped with 2.5-inch guns on this day in 1827.

Today the Artillery boosts of a dynamic inventory which ranges from Ballistic Missile, Multi Barrel Rocket launchers, High Mobility Guns, Mortars Precision Guided Munitions for the destruction of enemy targets to Radars, UAVs and Electro-optic devices for locating and carryout Post Strike Damage Assessment (PSDA).

The Artillery has always been a battle-winning factor and as per the new generation of warfare (Non-Contact Warfare), its role and significance are bound to increase manifold in future.

Today, Regiment of Artillery is the second-largest arm of the Indian Army, and with its guns, mortars, rocket launchers, unmanned aerial vehicles, surveillance systems, missiles and artillery firepower it constitutes almost one-sixth of its total strength.

Its motto is Sarvatra Izzat-o-Iqbal (Everywhere with Honour and Glory), the  Hindustani equivalent of the Royal Artillery motto Ubique Quo Fas Et Gloria Ducunt (Everywhere That Right And Glory Lead), and it shares the same symbol but with the Star of India in place of the Royal Crown.

The Hindustani motto honours the memory of the Hindu and Muslim gunners who fought during the Indian Rebellion of 1857.

A press statement from the Army said, “The regiment boasts of one Victoria Cross, one Distinguished Service Order, 15 Military Crosses during the pre-Independence era and one Ashok Chakra, seven Maha Vir Chakras, nine Kirti Chakras, 101 Vir Chakras, 63 Shaurya Chakras, six Bar to Sena Medal, 485 Sena Medals besides many other decorations.

The role of Bofors in the Kargil conflict also established beyond doubt that Artillery firepower plays a defining role in achieving victory in the modern battlefield. The accurate artillery fire on enemy positions during the Kargil war had reduced their defences to rubble thereby degrading the enemy’s fighting potential.”