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The Battaglione Azad Hindoustan was a unit of Indian troops formed in Fascist Italy under the Raggruppamento Centri Militari in July 1942. The unit, raised initially as the Centro I, was headed by Iqbal Shedai [1] - a long term Indian resident of Rome- and was formed of Indian ex-prisoners-of-war and Italians from India [2]. Raised along with units dedicated to Tunisia (Centro T) , the Arabs (Centro A), it was tasked to intelligence gathering and sabotage operations behind enemy lines. By the time of its disbandment in November 1942, the Battaglione Azad Hindoustan came to be between three hundred and fifty [3] to four hundred [4] strong. A part of the Centro I was renamed Battaglione Azad Hindoustan in August 1942 when the Raggruppamento Centri Militari itself was redesignated as Ragruppamento Frecce Rosse (Red Arrows Group) [5] The modus operandi of infiltration of the units of the Ragruppamento Frecce Rosse were intended to be means of infiltration on the ground, via submarine and by parachute. Accordingly, a further unit was raised within the Battaglione Azad Hindoustan to form the Platone Paracadutisti or the Parachute Platoon. The chosen troops were sent for Paratroop combat training to the Parachute School at Tarquinia.[6]
[edit] Uniform
The soldiers of the Battaglione Azad Hindoustan were attired in standard Italian military uniform. However, unlike the troops of the Legion Freies Indien who wore peaked field caps, all the troops of the Battaglione Azad Hindoustan wore a turban of the colour of the Italian Sahariana Tunic. Additionally, the troops wore on their tunics collar patches with three vertical stripes in the saffron , white and green (reflecting the colours of the Indian National Congress that was at the time focus of the nationalist movement). Italians serving in the Battaglione Azad Hindoustan were distinguished by stars on the collar patches that was not worn by the Indian troops. The Tarquinia detachment sent for parachute training wore their own collar patches above paratroop pattern patches, as well as the paratroop badge depicting an open yellow parachute embroidered in rayon thread on the left upper arm.[7]
[edit] Structure
The order of battle of the Battaglione Azad Hindoustan in August 1942 was [8]
- Compagnie Fucilieri, a motorized rifle company.
- Compagnie Mitraglieri, a motorized machinegun company.
- Platone Paracadutisti, Parachute Platoon
- Overseas Italian Platoon
[edit] References
- ^ Borra R. Subhas Chandra Bose, the Indian National Army, and the war of India's liberation. J Hist Rev.Winter, 1982; vol. 03 no. 4: p. 407.
- ^ Lundari. I Paracadutisti Italiani 1937-45'. p. 90
- ^ Borra R. Op. Cit. ibid.
- ^ Lundari. Op. Cit. p90.
- ^ Lundari. Op. Cit. p 99.
- ^ Lundari. Op.Cit
- ^ Lundari Op.Cit.
- ^ Lundari Op.Cit
[edit] See also
