Chail Military School

Chail Military School
Location
Chail Shimla Hills, Himachal Pradesh
India
Coordinates Latitude: 30° 58' 60 N, Longitude: 77° 10' 60 E
Information
Type Military school
Motto Sheelam Param Bhusnam
(Character is the greatest virtue)
Established 1922
School district Solan
Principal Lt Col Arun M Kulkarni
Head of school DGMT
Staff 100
Faculty 20
Grades Class 6-12
Number of students 300
Campus size 1,550-acre (6.3 km2)
Campus type Boarding School
Colour(s) Light blue and dark blue

        
Affiliation CBSE
Founder King George V
Houses Nalanda, Taxila, Ujjain
Nalanda Red (new dorms and annexe)

    
Taxila Green (Sidh and Oak)

    
Ujjain Blue (Glen and Avanti)

    
Website [1]

Chail Military School (Rashtriya Military School Chail or King George Royal Indian Military College) is a residential school in Himachal Pradesh, India, established after the First World War in 1922 with a donation of 250,000 from King George V’s patriotic fund. The foundation stone of the school was laid by King George V in February 1922. The school started functioning at Jalandhar Cantonment in 1925. Since then cadets are known as "Georgians".

The school is located amidst pine and deodar forests in the heart of the 110 km2 Chail Sanctuary at an altitude of 2144 meters. World's highest cricket ground[1] is located in Chail and is used as a training and playground for cadets.

Contents

History

Chail Military School is the oldest military School in India.[2] Along with its sister institute now located in Jhelum, Pakistan, Chail Military School was named as King George Royal Indian Military School after King George V. After the First World War, in February 1922 the foundation stone of the school was laid and regular classes were started in September 1925 at Jalandhar Cant in Punjab. The KGRIMS at Jhelum (now in Pakistan) and KGRIMS at Jalandhar were the first two such institutions to be established in 1925. The KGRIMS Ajmer was established in 1930. The above institutions were re-designated to KGRIMC in 1945 and two more institutions were established namely KGRIMC Belgaum in 1945 and KGRIMC Bangalore in 1946.

The school was founded with the aim of providing free education to the sons of JCOs, NCOs and ORs to prepare them for Army examinations including the Indian Special Certificate of Education. The curriculum of the school was based on military requirements with English as a medium of instruction. The strength of the school was 250 and the staff consisted mostly of military personnel.

During the World War II the cadets of these institutions were granted emergency commission and subsequently permission was granted for entry of the Cadets to the Armed Forces looking to the training they received at these institutions. During the Second World War the school was designated as College. One hundred more cadets were admitted under the expansion scheme. The eligibility norms were relaxed to facilitate enrollment of near relatives of Army personnel and admissions were thrown open to all branches of armed forces. At that time, College was affiliated to the Panjab University for matriculation and intermediate examinations. This institution produced a large number of officers. After partition in 1947, the KGRIMC, Jhelum which was in Pakistan was named as 'Military College Jhelum' and the Cadets / ex-students there call / identify themselves as 'ALAMGIRIANS'.

After independence, it was felt that these schools should impart liberal education and should have a wider social basis. A Parliamentary Committee headed by the renowned educationist Dr. H N Kunjru recommended reorganization of these schools on Public School lines like the Doon School Dehradun, Lawrence School Sanawar, Mayo College Ajmer, and in 1952, the Ghosh Committee recommended changes in the objectives of these institutions. The Cadets were now free to join any profession without the obligation to compulsorily join the Armed Forces. The King George Royal Indian Military College was renamed as King George’s School and shifted to Nowgong (Bundelkhand) in August 1952 where it was housed in ‘Old Kitchner College buildings’. The school was reorganized in September 1952 and half of the seats of total of 300 were thrown open to the wards of civilians and armed forces officers. In the same year school the was also made a member of the Indian Public School Conference (IPSC).

In 1952, these institutions at Nowgong, Ajmer, Belgaum and Bangalore were re-designated to King Georges School (KGS). In 1962 the fifth school was started at Dholpur in Rajasthan. The King George’s School Nowgong was relocated to its current location in Chail in Himachal Pradesh on July 1, 1960. It was renamed as Chail Military School, Chail. In Jan 1966 these KG schools were re-designated to Military Schools. Cadets are now prepared for senior school certificate examination of the central board of secondary education, New Delhi and it is no longer obligatory for them to join the Defence forces.

In 2007, Chail Military School along with its sister institutes Bangalore Military School (Karnataka), Belgaum Military School (Karnataka), Ajmer Military School (Rajasthan) and Dholpur Military School (Rajasthan) were renamed as Rashtriya Military Schools of India.[3]

These five prime institutions under the Ministry of Defence have contributed immensely to our nation owing to its Cadets in Defence of our country in time of war and peace and also in other fields. During the last 86 years since these institutions were first started many Cadets of these institutions have risen to the rank of Generals, Air marshals and Admirals, Secretaries to Govt. of India and to top positions in the Police and Paramilitary forces. Many have established industries and reached international level recognition in their fields and also held / holding high positions in the multinational / public and private sector companies. Many cadets are Ministers & Members of Parliament, renowned surgeons, scientists etc. The cadets / ex-students from these institutions call / identify themselves as 'GEORGIANS'.

The school

The school is a category ‘A’ establishment of the Army and is administrated by the Directorate General of Military Training at IHQ of MOD(Army). The Central Governing Council(CGC), headed by the Defence Secretary, Ministry of Defence is the apex body for the school. The school prepares boys from the age of 10 to 18 years for the All India Secondary School Examination and All India Senior School Certificate Examination, New Delhi and also for Entrance Examination to the National Defence Academy.

Subdivisions

Admissions

Admission to class VI

Students are not admitted directly to the school. Students aged in between 10-12 appear in CET for all Military schools, followed by interview and medical examinations to join the school according to merit list (the success rate is approximately 1% of the total applicant). For further details see Director General of Military training (MT15) website [2]

Admission to class IX

Admission to class IX is through a Common Entrance Test, which is conducted by the Rashtriya Military School Chail.

Admission to class XI

Admission to class XI is based on marks secured in the X class.

Reservations

Academics

The school is affiliated to the CBSE board of India. Regular unit tests are held quarterly in addition to half yearly and annual examinations. Students appear for AISSCE (10th) and AISSE (12th) along with other CBSE affiliated schools in India. Student to staff ratio is about 2.5:1 and student to teaching staff ratio is 10:1 which is far above the national average of India. Staff is recruited by central government from all over India. Students are offered Science, Arts and Commerce subjects in 11th and 12th classes. School curriculum includes seven periods of 40 minutes each. Daily three hours of compulsory prep is included in a routine for students to concentrate on studies.

Sports and physical education

The school has the World's highest cricket ground (at 7500 ft) where the morning PT, evening sports and sporting events are held.

Cadets undergo compulsory physical training in morning and play sports in evening. The school has facilities for cricket, hockey, basketball, volleyball, athletics, cross-country, boxing, cycling, hiking and mountaineering. The school is a member of the Indian Public School Conference (IPSC) and participates in state as well as national level sports competitions. In 2007, cadets won six gold, seven silver and two bronze in the CBSE cluster XIII Athletics meet held at Chandigarh. The Inter Military Schools Pentagular meet is an annual sports and CCA event where all five military schools (and previously Rashtriya Indian Military College Dehradun) compete in several field. The school has won many medals in the annual Pentangular meets.

CCA

CCA is a part of the school curriculum. Cadets participate in debates, declamations, quizzes, extempore, dance, theatre, poetry recitation in English and Hindi. They also participate in interhouse and interschool arts competitions. The school team is a regular participant in national and state level CCA meets.

Chail Military School in Siachen

Cadets from the school have reached the world's highest battlefield 'Siachen Glacier'. The team comprises four cadets each from the Rashtriya Indian Military College (RIMC) and the Chail Military School, two cadets from the Indian Military Academy, six cadets - including four girls - from the National Cadet Corps, four civilians, including the wife of an army officer, four officers, 15 personnel below officer rank and seven media persons.[4][5][6]

Notable alumni

The school has produced 36 Generals (Lt Gen and Maj Gen), 54 Brigadier Generals and thousands of Colonels and Lt Colonels along with governors, ministers and civil servants.

The school has produced over 100 officers above the ranks of brigadiers, several IAS, IPS and IRS officers, doctors, engineers, actors, business men and gallantry award winners (VC, SM, PVSM, AVSM, VSM, KC, SC, COAS CC, SM& bar and so on). The full list is at the website (webs) of Chail Military School.

Travelling to school

The nearest airports are at Shimla (48 km) and Chandigarh (108 km) but Chail Military School has its own helipad at the altitude of 2444.4 m as pictured below. Nearest broad gauge railway station is at Kalka (89 km) and narrow gauge station is at Kandaghat (29 km). Chail is well connected with regular bus services from Delhi, Patiala, Chandigarh, Kalka, Solan, Shimla, Kandaghat and Kufri. By car Chail is reached from Kandaghat, Shimla, Kufri or Gaura (Giri Ganga).

Chail is pleasant in summers and cold in winter. The average annual rainfall is about 150 mm.

Chail
Climate chart (explanation)
J F M A M J J A S O N D
 
 
61
 
1
−3
 
 
69
 
3
−2
 
 
61
 
9
4
 
 
53
 
15
11
 
 
66
 
23
14
 
 
175
 
23
16
 
 
424
 
22
15
 
 
434
 
17
15
 
 
160
 
16
14
 
 
33
 
15
11
 
 
13
 
5
3
 
 
28
 
2
1
Average max. and min. temperatures in °C
Precipitation totals in mm
Source: [9]

Commandants and Principals

Commandants Years
Lt. AL Hadden 1925–1928
Capt. HE Sharps 1928–1932
Capt. THL Stebbing 1932–1936
Capt. JH Bell 1936–1939
Maj. WS Beddal 1939–1944
Lt Col RCF Caulifield 1944–1947
Lt Col F Mitchell 1947
Maj N L Gujral 1947–1948
Maj R Som Dutt 1948–1949
Maj F S Shergill 1949–1952
Shri Din Dayal 1952–1954
Shri PD Gadre 1954–1960
Maj S Mazumdar 1960–1961
Cdr BS Ranjit 1961–1963
Maj SS Nakra 1963–1964
Lt Col SS Nakra 1964–1967
Lt Col Randhir Singh 1967–1968
Lt Col Ramji Chugh 1968–1973
Maj JC Kohli 1973–1976
Shri UK Chaturvedi 1976–1983
Maj BN Arjunan 1983–1984
Maj MPS Tyagi 1984–1985
Shri L William 1985–1986
Shri KK Arora 1986–1988
Lt Col TS Aulakh 1988–1990
Shri RC Chopra 1990–1992
Dr SN Pandey 1992–1993
Lt Col AK Maini 1993–1996
Maj Vijai Singh 1996–1999
Shri TS Panwar 1999–2001
Maj Kamal Padha 2001–2003
Lt Col Raju Peter 2003–2006
Lt Col. V Ravindra Kumar 2006–2008
Lt Col. VK Bhat 2008–2011
Lt Col. Arun M Kulkarni 2011-

Georgian Association North

All students and their family members are the part of the extended Georgian family. Current president of the Georgian Association is Lt Gen B S Jaswal who was elected in April 2009 at Chandigarh. Past presidents were

Lt Gen. R S Dyal

Lt Col. Dilbagh Singh Grewal

Col. Kashyap

Rashtriya Military School Chail will be kicking off a year long celebrations on 20th Nov 2010 at Chail to celebrate 50 yrs of it existence at the current location. Chief Minister of Himachal Pradesh, Prof. Prem Kumar Dhumal will inaugurate the function. During next one year a large no of events are planned i.e. A mountaineering expedition, a sailing cruise, a motor cycle rally, a car rally etc.

See also

References

  1. ^ News - Telegraph
  2. ^ A special day for oldest military school retrieved 27 October 2008
  3. ^ Message Military School
  4. ^ 15 trekking teams have visited Siachen: Antony - India
  5. ^ Chail Military School
  6. ^ Siachen trekking expedition takes off, Kashmir news Kashmir Discussion Forum, Kashmir Tour, Srinagar,Book hotel in Kashmir, Kashmir Bazaar, kashmir SMS, All about kashmir, Kashmir Gifts, Kashmir Websites, Great Kashmiris, kashmir travel forum, forum ...
  7. ^ "CAPT GURBACHAN SINGH SALARIA,PVC", Indian Army

External links