Auxiliary Force (India)

The Auxiliary Force (India) (AFI) was a part-time, paid volunteer organisation within the Indian Army in British India. Its units were entirely made up of European and Anglo-Indian personnel.

The AFI was created by the Auxiliary Force Act 1920[1] to replace the unpopular British section of the Indian Defence Force, which had recruited by conscription. By contrast, the AFI was an all-volunteer force modelled after the British Territorial Army.

The Indian parallel to the AFI was the Indian Territorial Force.

Units of the AFI on 3 September 1939

NameHeadquarters
Contingents
Agra ContingentAgra
Allahabad ContingentAllahabad
Bangalore ContingentBangalore
Bareilly CorpsBareilly
Bareilly ContingentNaini Tal
Bombay ContingentBombay
Cawnpore ContingentCawnpore
Dehra Dun Contingent[2]Dehra Dun
Delhi Contingent[3]Delhi
Karachi CorpsKarachi
Lucknow ContingentLucknow
Madras ContingentMadras
Poona ContingentPoona
Punjab ContingentLahore
Cavalry regiments
Assam Valley Light HorseDibrugarh
Bihar Light HorseMuzaffarpur
Bombay Light Patrol[4]Bombay
Calcutta Light HorseCalcutta
Chota Nagpur RegimentRanchi
Northern Bengal Mounted RiflesDarjeeling
Punjab Light Horse[5]Lahore
Southern Provinces Mounted RiflesMadras
Surma Valley Light HorseSilchar
Allahabad Detachment, United Provinces Horse (Southern Regiment)[6]Allahabad
Cawnpore Detachment, United Provinces Horse (Southern Regiment)[7]Cawnpore
Lucknow Detachment, United Provinces Horse (Southern Regiment)[8]Lucknow
Armoured Car companies
Bangalore Armoured Car Company[9]Bangalore
Artillery brigades[10]
Bengal Artillery, RABarrackpore
I (Calcutta Port Defence) Brigade, RACalcutta
V (Cossipore) Field Brigade, RACossipore
Separate artillery batteries
No. 3 (Madras) Field Battery, RA[11]Madras
No. 10 (Bombay) Battery, RA[4]Bombay
No. 13 (Lucknow) Field Battery, RA[8]Lucknow
No. 15 (Kirkee) Field Battery, RA[12]Kirkee
No. 17 (Agra) Field Battery, RA[13]Agra
No. 18 (Bareilly) Field Battery, RA[14]Bareilly
No. 20 (Cawnpore) Field Battery, RA[7]Cawnpore
Engineer companies
No. 1 (Calcutta) Fortress Company, RECalcutta
No. 3 (Bombay) Fortress Company, RE[4]Bombay
No. 4 (Karachi) Fortress Company, RE[15]Karachi
Signal companies
No. 1 (Madras) Signal Company[11]Madras
Railway battalions
Assam Bengal Railway BattalionChittagong
Bengal Nagpur Railway BattalionKharagpur
Bengal and North Western Railway BattalionGorakhpur
1st Battalion, Bombay, Baroda and Central India Railway RegimentLower Parel
2nd Battalion, Bombay, Baroda and Central India Railway RegimentAjmer
Eastern Bengal Railway BattalionSealdah
1st Battalion, East Indian Railway RegimentLillooah
2nd Battalion, East Indian Railway RegimentLucknow
1st Battalion, Great India Peninsula Railway RegimentParel
2nd Battalion, Great India Peninsula Railway RegimentJhansi
1st Battalion, Madras and Southern Mahratta Railway RiflesPerambur
2nd Battalion, Madras and Southern Mahratta Railway RiflesHubli
North Western Railway BattalionLahore
South Indian Railway BattalionTrichinopoly
Infantry battalions
Allahabad Rifles[6]Allahabad
Bangalore Battalion (Bangalore Rifle Volunteers)[9]Bangalore
Bombay Battalion[4]Bombay
Calcutta and Presidency BattalionCalcutta
Calcutta ScottishCalcutta
Cawnpore Rifles[7]Cawnpore
East Coast BattalionVizayapatam
Hyderabad RiflesSecunderabad
Kolar Gold Fields BattalionOorgaum
Lucknow Rifles[8]Lucknow
Madras Guards[11]Madras
Nagpur RiflesNagpur
Nilgiri Malabar BattalionOotacamund
Poona Rifles[12]Poona
Punjab Rifles[5]Lahore
Simla RiflesSimla
Sind Rifles[15]Karachi
Separate infantry companies
Bhusawal Company[16]Bhusawal
Coorg and Mysore CompanyMercara
Eastern Bengal CompanyDacca
Yercaud CompanyYercaud
Machine-gun companies
No. 2 (Karachi) Machine-Gun Company[15]Karachi
No. 5 (Agra) Machine-Gun Company[13]Agra

Footnotes

  1. ↑ "Indian Auxiliary Forces: A Territorial Scheme", The Times, 1 October 1920
  2. ↑ 3 Infantry Platoons, 1 Wireless Telegraphy Section & 4 Motor Platoons.
  3. ↑ 1 Cavalry Troop, 1 Infantry Company & 3 Motor Platoons.
  4. 1 2 3 4 Part of Bombay Contingent
  5. 1 2 Part of Punjab Contingent
  6. 1 2 Part of Allahabad Contingent
  7. 1 2 3 Part of Cawnpore Detachment
  8. 1 2 3 Part of Lucknow Contingent
  9. 1 2 Part of Bangalore Contingent
  10. ↑ soon renamed regiments.
  11. 1 2 3 Part of Madras Contingent
  12. 1 2 Part of Poona Contingent
  13. 1 2 Part of Agra Contingent
  14. ↑ Part of Bareilly Contingent
  15. 1 2 3 Part of Karachi Contingent
  16. ↑ Administered by 1st Battalion, Great India Peninsula Railway Regiment.
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