Role of Army in Nepal

Published in The Kathmandu Post, Sunday, April 22, 2001

The Army in Nepal, officially known as the Royal Nepalese Army (RNA) has been proud and prestigious institution of the country, part of Nepalese national government and a revered organization since early times. Its history goes back to the time of the expansion of the Gurkha state, led by the Great King Prithvi Narayan Shah, the founder of modern Nepal whose martial and diplomatic skill laid the foundation of of the sovereign Nepali state entity.

Traditionally, armies have been employed by states for such roles as territorial expansion, defense from external aggression, and maintaining internal law and order as well. The RNA too has been called upon to perform all these roles in addition to such duties as being part of UN peacekeeping forces in foreign countries. Additionally the Army has taken part in disaster relief and road construction part of its peacetime responsibility towards the nation. The Nepali Gurkha soldiers were redoubtable in King Prithvi Narayan Shah's unification campaign. he, in fact, launched a war against a multitude of independent and divided principalities to forma single monolithic mountain kingdom, a single political entity. The relativey small Gurkha Army which accomplished the task, was avery cpabale fighting force despite the shortage of modern arms. (ref: The Rise of the House of Gurkhas, Fr. Ludwig Stiller, S.J.)

The Gurkhas will to fight was of such great magnitude that it withstood the chinese onslaught in 1789 stopping the main Chinese-Tibetan forces at Dhaibung, Rasuwa and foiling their attaempt to assault Kathmandu. in 1814, the Nepali Gurkha Army waged a defensive war against the mighty East India Company government. The British were so impressed with the hardy Gurkhas taht they began recruiting from their own sworn enemies. in the 1857 Indian mutiny, Jung Bahadur Rana supported the beleagured British with a military force of thousands of Nepalese troops who helped suppress the mutinous native Indian soldiers. this was duly recognized by the British with a large schunk of seized Nepali land being returned to Nepal.

In the First and Second World Wars, thousands upon thousands of Nepalese youths served in the British and Nepali units fighting for the Allied cause. many never returned while a few distinguished themselves with the Victoria Cross (ref: Victora Cross originals built with copper from Russian cannons captured in Crimean War, circa Florence Nightingale's times), the highest British gallantry award for valour. The year 1950 saw a civil war between the Rana government led RNA and the Congress' Mukti Sena, whose ranks were filled with many World War II veterans. from 1960 to 1990 there were incidents when the Army moved against armed revolutionaries, like the 1975 Okhaldhunga incident. The Army slaughtered Congress armed cadres, wishing to use force to overturn the then Pnachayat system. Also in the early 1970s (ref: 1974 according to wikipedia.org), the RNA disramed Tibetan Khampa rebels, thus averting possible Chinese intervention in Nepal. In the later stages of the People's movement for restoration of democracy in 1990, RNA soldiers enforced a military curfew, but fortunately His majesty the King averted blodshed by giving in to popular pressure.

The beginning of Maoist insurgency has brought another challenge to the security of Nepal. What began as a low-key movement with sporadic anti-police raids has now incresed to such levels that after the disastrous incidents of Dunai, Vorletaar, Rukumkot, and Naumoole, the Maoists are a force to be reckoned with. Able to mount large scale attacks with upto a thousand personnel, the Maoists have progressed with muskets to (Lee Enfield) )0.303 rifles (apparently(captured from the police) and explosives used in large amounts. Recent reports speak of police deserting their posts due to fear shaking th every foundation of law, order and and the right to live. The government committed the cardinal sin of not consulting the Army (the author put this matter to then Army chief of Staff Gen. Pyarjung Thapa at Shah residence private party) when this terrorist movement was still in its infancy. If the Army had utilized its counter-insurgency skills early on, the low intensity conflict (term borrowed from Jane's Defense Weekly, 1990 issue with interview of Gen Lindsay, USA, SOCOM commander) would have been over by now. Instead, the government now wants to use the Army in a rush (caution to Obama adminsitartion as it moves to rescue 21 Americans held hostage by Somali pirates remebering Desert One), which could lead to panic and thus to a disaster.

Now, the Army itself is ina danger of being outgunned and outnumbered and defeated by the rebels. Although better trained and equipped than the police, small group deployments of soldiers could be overwhelmed by large hordes of Maoist rebels who could theoretically overrun Army positions, and capture modern arms belonging to the Army. besides the standard rifle of the Army, the SLR (ref: Fabrique National Herstal Fusil Automatique Leger, Belgian design) which is a large, long and and semi-automatic (one bullet at each trigger pressure) is unsuited in commando style raids where automatic arms are considered suitable (upto 10 bullets at each trigger pressure). The only automatic rifles are with the two Army Special Forces companies, which should have been employed early on. (There is still time to use these highly trained anti-terrorist professionals provided no political strings are attached including the catchword "human rights"). Also, the three light machine guns (LMG) in an army platoon (40 soldiers) are old and bulky and in fact not light by modern standards (over 10 kg, useless in battle manoeuvre scenarios).

Recently the government has asked the Army to monitor the customs along the border, thereby significantly increasing government revenue. However, the Army's requests to buy a an airplane and run a bank (ref: US has a Federal Credit Union and The Royal Thai Air Force gave birth to the famed Thai Airways; US tacit approval of these activites resulted in Thailand becoming secure from Communist Threat from Laos and Vietnam, and a successful world tourist destination. The US maintained strategic defense ties with Thailand including basing rights for bombers and fighter aircraft in the hights of the Vietnam War) have been turned down. Has the government been sympathetic to to the Army's wish to properly manage its welfare fund?

As the Army is the only means at ists disposal with the potential of wiping out the five year old insurgency, which has taken over 1,600 lives, the government should be careful before it makes any decision in a hurry. It also has the potential of a failure if utilized in an improper manner. Therefore, it ought to use its silver bullet (ref: Fighter Combat in the Jet Age, Bill Sweetman, purchased in 2001 in Ekta Books by the author) in a manner that recognizes its strength and weaknesses.

Author's note:- The author was once a member of Nepal Scouts, cub in 1986 when he first visited the Royal Palace. This work is in tribute to King Birendra and especially to Princess Shruti Shah and Prince Nirajan Shah, who fell to unseen and mysterious plotting. I stillsuspect that the anti-monarchist forces of plotting this coup d'etat in a Grand Design to destroy all Royal leaning Nepalis. The author saw Crown Prince Dipendra closely as he played tennis in Tribhuvan Army Club in 1990s (can't rememember exact date. Also, the author heard Crown Princess Shruti speak to him in telephone while the author lived in New Baneswor residence of an aeronautical engineer in Royal Nepal Airlines Corporation. My granddad Flying Officer BK Singh flew the Crown Prince Dipendra to his school in Darjeleeng during his school days. RNAC owes much of its organizational and engineering skills to the elite group of RAFVR pilots who first started military and commercial avaition traffic into the forbidden Rana kingdom.

The author wanted to be an F-16C Falcon pilot in the USAF when he was in his eighth grade. But due to myopia, it was not possible to fly as there is acute danger of human error. He however wrote to the USAF Academy in Colorado Springs, but was asked to attend the Academy through Nepalese government channels. As the author felt increased competition to take control of $3,070 million of foreign debt sponsored scholarships within the Army, he gave it up and only cherished a dream to fly. The author resented going to India as there too competition was severe and russian penetration deep. India has only begun to introduce US platforms. Many Indian pilots die in Russian built MiG-21 airframe, which according to AP reports, is considered a "flying coffin". The author prefers to write like Nick Cook of Jane's andf Interavia and lead a successful writing career as Bill Gunston.