Posted on by

Indian Army Orders

Indian Army Order 511, of 1917

511. Officers – In order to place officers who are granted commissions in the Indian Army after service in the Special Reserve, Territorial Force and New Armies, on an equality as regards service for promotion with officers who are similarly granted commissions in the British Service, it has been decided that certain modifications shall be made in the terms offered in India Army Order No 729 of 1916. That order and India Army Order 126 of 1917 are accordingly cancelled and the following substituted:-

14th May 1917
With the approval of the Right Hon’ble the Secretary of State for India, the Government of India have sanctioned* the grant of permanent commissions in the Indian Army, up to a limited number, to selected officers of the Special Reserve, Territorial Force and New Armies under the following conditions:-

  1. A candidate must have been under 26 years of age on the date  on which he was commissioned, or on the 5th August, 1914, in the case of an officer who held a Special Reserve or Territorial Force, commission before that date.
  2. A candidate will count for pension all service as a commissioned or warrant officer, and one-half of service in a lower rank, rendered since the 5th August 1914, but only service in the regular forces before that date will count for pension as above. The period of service rendered out of India prior to joining the Indian Army, allowed to count for pensions, is subject to the limit of 5 years laid down in paragraph 694 (a), Army Regulations, India Volume I.
  3. A candidate will count for promotion the period of commissioned service which he is permitted to count for pension less nine months, and the date of his commission in the Indian Army will be regulated accordingly.
  4. An officer will join the Indian Army on probation in the rank to which his length of service, adjusted as above, would entitle him under Indian Army rules of promotion, any higher rank being relinquished. Readjustments of rank will be effected as follows:-
    1. In the case of an officer sent from England to India, from the date of landing in India:
    2. In the case of an officer serving in India or on field service, from the date of joining an Indian unit:
    3. In the case of an officer already attached to an Indian unit, from the date of his acceptance as a probationer for a commission in the Indian Army as notified in the “Gazette of India”, (but this will not affect any pay previously drawn, vide paragraph 318-A, Army Regulations, India, Volume II).
  5. An officer will be on probation for the first year in the Indian Army, and if found unsuitable may be reverted at any time within the first year to his original corps.
  6. An officer must be unmarried.
  7. An officer will receive Indian rates of pay and allowances during the period of his probation.
  8. During the period of probation an officer will not be allowed to subscribe to the Indian Military Widows and Orphans Fund, but such subscription will be compulsory with effect from the date of his permanent admission to the Indian Army.
  1. An officer who has already submitted an application for a permanent commission in the Indian Army under the terms of Indian Army Order No. 729 of 1916, and who is not prepared to accept the conditions now stated, will be permitted to withdraw his application.
  2. Applications for commissions in the Indian Army should be submitted to the Military Secretary to His Excellency the Commander-in-Chief in India on special forms which can be obtained on application to the Military Secretary, India Office, General Officers Commanding Divisions in India or General Officers Commanding Forces in the Field.

Indian Army Order 510, of 1917

510. Officers – With the approval of the Right Hon’ble the Secretary of State for India, the Government of India have sanctioned the admission of the Indian Army of Reserve of Officers into the Indian Army subject to the following conditions: –

  1. A candidate must be at least 19 years of age at the date of his application. A candidate for Indian Cavalry must have been under 26, and a candidate for Indian Infantry under 28 years of age, on the date on which he was commissioned, or on the 5th August 1914 whichever is the later date.
  2. A candidate must have not less than one year’s service as a commissioned officer at the date of his application. Such commissioned service may have been either in the Indian Army Reserve of Officers or in a British unit, or in both combined.
  3. A candidate must be unmarried.
  4. A candidate must be recommended by the Commanding Officer of his own unit, who must certify that he is willing to accept the candidate as an officer in his own regiment or corps; and he must also be recommended by the General Officers Commanding the Brigade and Division in which he is serving, and by His Excellency the Commander-in-Chief in India.
  5. A candidate must ordinarily have attained a standard of general education equivalent to the standard for matriculation at a university.
  6. A candidate must be reported by a medical board to be physically fit for permanent commission in the Indian Army.
  7. A candidate will be admitted to the Indian Army with effect from the date notified in the Gazette of India, and will be eligible for retention, promotion and pension in the Indian Army in accordance with the provisions of paragraphs 310, 311 and 318, Army Regulations, India, Volume II, and paragraphs 694, 706, 163 and 163-A, Army Regulations, India, Volume I, as modified by any special orders issued in connection with the war.
  8. A candidate will count for pension all service as a commissioned or warrant officer, and one-half of service in a lower rank, rendered since the 5th August 1914, but only service in the regular forces before that date will count for pension as above. The period of service out of India prior to joining the Indian Army allowed to count for pension is subject to the limit of 5 years laid down in paragraph 694 (a), Army Regulations, India, Volume I.
  9. A candidate will count for promotion the period of commissioned service which he is permitted to count for pension, less nine months, and the date of his commission in the Indian Army will be regulated accordingly.
  10. With effect from the date of appointment to the Indian Army, an officer will be required to subscribe for the benefits of the Indian Military Widows and Orphans Fund.

 

  1. In exceptional cases of proved merit in the field, of which His Excellency the Commander-in-Chief in India shall be the sole judge, the conditions laid down in (a), (b), (c), (d) and (e) may be waived, each case being judged on its merits. No, application in respect of such a case should, however, be submitted unless the officer’s services have been not only meritorious, but exceptionally so.
  2. Applications for commissions in the Indian Army should be submitted to the Military Secretary to His Excellency the Commander-in-Chief on forms which can be obtained on application to General Officers Commanding.