Madras Sappers to celebrate 225 years

Madras Sappers to celebrate 225 years
New Indian Express

BANGALORE: The Ulsoor Lake is all set to wear a festive look with the Thambis celebrating their 225th anniversary this week.

The Bangalore-based Madras Sappers, one of the oldest regiments of the Indian Army raised on September 30, 1780 will celebrate the event from October 6 to 8. Troops of the MEG and Centre, the Army’s engineering regiment are popularly called Thambis (brothers’ in Tamil) for they hail mostly from the south of the country.

To commemorate the day, a ceremonial parade will be held with 10,000 men attending. A solemn tribute will be paid at the war memorial in its sprawling campus later.

The Indian Army’s corps of engineers constitutes the Bengal, Bombay and Madras Sappers. The Madras Sappers were raised by the East India Company on September 30, 1780 at Fort St George, Chennai. Their history is replete with heroic deeds of selfless devotion and supreme sacrifice over the years.

The battlefield history of the Madras Sappers started after they defeated the Mysore Army at Sholinghur in 1781. In the 19th century, when the British were expanding their empire, the Sappers were deployed on a number of foreign assignments in Egypt, Persia, Abyssinia, Malta, Malaya, Cyrus, Sudan, Somali, Tibet, Afghanistan, Burma, Hazara and Chitral and also as a part of a contingent to China. Besides this, they participated in Assaye, Coorg and Maenee battles.

World Wars I and II also saw their strengths. During World War I, Sappers were an integral part of the British campaigns in Europe, Africa and Middle East and they saw action in the North African desert in Word War II apart from the hills and jungles of Burma to the sweltering humidity of Malaya and Indonesia.

From independence, they helped in the construction of roads, airfields, bridges and laying of mine fields during Indo-China and Indo-Pak wars. They have been providing invaluable engineering support to Siachen troops. During Op Vijay (Kargil), the Thambis were at the forefront clearing mines laid haphazardly by the infiltrators.

The Sappers have a collection of 42 battle honors and 13 theatre honours that they have been awarded.

Every Republic Day, they are known to grab the best marching contingent award for several years now.

The Sappers are now known for their prompt response and rehabilitation just after the tsunami struck last year. They were actively involved in rescue and rehabilitation. They constructed Bailey bridges, cleared roads, carried out boat repairs, constructed temporary shelters, distributed relief material and rebuilt confidence levels among locals and the civil administration.

The Sappers are famous for their battle on the sports field also and excel in hockey, swimming, boxing, rowing, They have won eight Arjuna Awards.

To commemorate their 225th anniversary, an event known as ‘Know your Sapper-cum-Regatta” will be held at the Ulsoor Lake on October 8.

A motorcycle-cum-cycle rally ‘Thambi Udhaar II’ is also being organised with an aim to meet ex-servicemen and war widows hailing from the southern states.