Very rare pics of some of India's Special Forces, specialty units

[mountainbear]

Really great pics and info!
Thanks rajkhalsa.

[Inconnu]

Very special :>

[rajkhalsa]

Thanks

Speckfire,
Cool Did you buy that in the States?

Here are some more pics of the NSG HRT:

[Alphonse]

thanks for the pics raj. its really sad how they're utilised.

[vi]

this is rare

[brigadeotg]

Raj, more NSG pics for your database since these might not be archived. All from the Akshardham attack.

NSG commando Suresh Chandra(Killed in the operation) with his comrades after he had become a Black Cat commando.

The young Suresh Chandra during his training days to be a commando. The tough life in the NSG made him tougher

.

Troops carry a coffin, draped in an Indian flag, containing the body of a National Security Guards commando in New Delhi on Wednesday. The commando was killed in last night's raid on the Akshardham temple. — ******* photo

http://www.rediff.com/news/2002/sep/25sld04.jpg - Graphic

[speckfire]

Speckfire,
Cool Did you buy that in the States?

Hi Raj,

I bought that in Canada. This rifle is really accurate and very plesant to shoot.

[TacoDelRio]

Thanks for the pictures, Raj!

[sheroo]

They were used in the 60s and 70s to great effect against the Chinese, in Punjab in the 80s, and in Kashmir in the 90s.

A
Cheers,
Raj

Hey Raj I know they were used but what do u mean great effect? can u elaborate. I came up with zilch. From what I understood their capabilities were enormous but badly misused by RAW and the home ministry

[khukuri]

nice stuff, always appreciate stuff from india!

[ElHombre]

raj is back with more great pics,

[brigadeotg]

Rare pic of the SPG(Special Protection Group) during the attack on Indian Parliament by Jihadists on Dec 2001. The SPG provides personal protection to the Prime Minister, family members and former prime ministers if needed. Similar to the US Secret Service...

[rajkhalsa]

Thanks for the pics botg! It looks like the NSG had access to PAGST type helmets long before they were being used by other special forces.

Hey Raj I know they were used but what do u mean great effect? can u elaborate. I came up with zilch. From what I understood their capabilities were enormous but badly misused by RAW and the home ministry

Hi

I had talked with a professor of a friend of mine who specializes in Cold War history.

They were indeed poorly used in many cases, and because it is a civilian staffed force, the higher ranking officers became political pawns, and at the mercy of politicians who'd make a show for their constituants by forcing the deployment of them in non-critical areas to act as gorified police officers. There were also charges of corruption and mismanagement which had tarnished their image in the latter years. That they had to effectively shoulder the role of government bureaucracy in strife-torn areas and as such got involved in the slanderousness of Indian party politics certainly didn't help matters.

That's why when they were transferred and reorganized, they basically pensioned off the ranking officers, and replaced them with experienced police and paramilitary officers from other organizations like the CRPF, RR, Assam Rifles, etc. The NCOs/JCOs and lower ranks remained.


But in its heyday, they were instrumental smuggling out Tibetan refugees and in escorting Tibetan leaders out of Tibet into India. They would be a act as the 'rashtriya' logistical and information backbone of the SFF and would establish safe houses, guides, relocated refugees, humint gathering, as well as, which was their specialty, scouting out/trailblazing infiltration routes in and out of border areas.

It is for this reason they are such a good match for policing the Nepali and Bhutanese borders, where incredibly difficult and remote topography makes it very difficult to patrol. That plus the ethnic composition of the force mostly drawn from the Himalayan regions of India makes them ideal for intel working in that region.







^ Rescue efforts


^ Training demonstration


^ Patrolling the dense jungle

[Swedish Chef]

Thanks for the pix rajkhalsa and brigadeotg .

[rajkhalsa]

Some more rare pics of the SFF

Indian army troops, including members of the elite Special Frontier Force (maroon berets in foreground), listen as unseen Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh addresses them during a meeting in Leh, 11 June 2005.

Indian Defence Minister, Pranab Mukherjee (C) shakes hands with members of the "Army Women Everest Expedition- 2005 team" as Army Chief, J. J. Singh (L) looks on during the flag-in ceremony in New Delhi, 23 June 2005.

Mukherjee congratulated the successful women's mountaineering team of the Army, saying the success of the expedition has brought laurels to the nation in general and the Indian Army in particular. Indian Army's women mountaineers created history on 02 June 2005, by becoming the first women's expedition to scale Mount Everest, the world's tallest peak, from the Chinese side through the North Col Route.