3 Medium Regiment is part of the

Regiment of Artillery Regiment of Artillery may refer to: * Regiment of Artillery (Pakistan) * Regiment of Artillery (India) The Regiment of Artillery is a combat support arm of the Indian Army, which provides massive firepower during all ground operations of t ...

of the

Indian Army The Indian Army (IA) (ISO 15919, ISO: ) is the Land warfare, land-based branch and largest component of the Indian Armed Forces. The President of India is the Commander-in-Chief, Supreme Commander of the Indian Army, and its professional head ...

Formation

3 Medium Regiment was raised on 14 May 1956 as a

field artillery Field artillery is a category of mobile artillery used to support army, armies in the field. These weapons are specialized for mobility, tactical proficiency, short range, long range, and extremely long range target engagement. Until the ear ...

regiment at

Delhi Cantonment Delhi Cantonment (ISO: ''Dillī Chāvanī''; popularly referred to as Delhi Cantt) is a Class I Cantonment Board established in 1914. The area of the Cantonment is and the population of the Cantonment as per the 2011 census is 110,351. The ...

. The regiment was formed out of 50, 52, 53 and 54 artillery post groups, which were reorganised to form the present batteries. The Post Group organisation ceased to exist thereafter. CjIf1YiVAAAPVNt

Lieutenant Colonel (later Lieutenant General) J. F. R. Jacob was the first commanding officer. The class composition was initially planned to be 'all-India', but then it was decided to be a 'Single Class' regiment composed entirely of

Sikh Sikhs (singular Sikh: or ; , ) are an ethnoreligious group who adhere to Sikhism, a religion that originated in the late 15th century in the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent, based on the revelation of Guru Nanak. The term ''Si ...

gunners.

Operations

; Operation Vijay The regiment under the command of Lieutenant Colonel (later Major General) LS Lehl, VrC took part in the liberation of

Goa Goa (; ; ) is a state on the southwestern coast of India within the Konkan region, geographically separated from the Deccan highlands by the Western Ghats. It is bound by the Indian states of Maharashtra to the north, and Karnataka to the ...

, but didn't see much action as the Portuguese offered hardly any resistance. ;

Sino-Indian War The Sino–Indian War, also known as the China–India War or the Indo–China War, was an armed conflict between China and India that took place from October to November 1962. It was a military escalation of the Sino–Indian border dispu ...

In 1962, the unit was deployed in

Sikkim Sikkim ( ; ) is a States and union territories of India, state in northeastern India. It borders the Tibet Autonomous Region of China in the north and northeast, Bhutan in the east, Koshi Province of Nepal in the west, and West Bengal in the ...

, but this sector did not see any action. ; Indo-Pakistani War of 1971: The regiment took part in Operation Cactus Lily in the

Uri Uri may refer to: Places * Canton of Uri, a canton in Switzerland * Úri, a village and commune in Hungary * Uri, Iran, a village in East Azerbaijan Province * Uri, Jammu and Kashmir, a town in India * Uri (island), off Malakula Island in V ...

sector. The gunners manned eighteen 25-pounders and eight 3.7-inch howitzers and used them for direct firing and bunker bursting roles. It supported attacks in the Uri sector on Jaishree, Ring Contour, Jandi Mali, Shah Panja, Dhum Chitek and Lower Udham posts. ;Operation Rakshak II The regiment took part in

anti-terrorist Counterterrorism (alternatively spelled: counter-terrorism), also known as anti-terrorism, relates to the practices, military tactics, techniques, and strategies that governments, law enforcement, businesses, and intelligence agencies use to co ...

operations in

Hoshiarpur Hoshiarpur () is a city and a Municipal corporations in India, municipal corporation in Hoshiarpur district in the Doaba region of the Indian state of Punjab, India, Punjab. It was founded, according to tradition, during the early part of the ...

district of

Punjab Punjab (; ; also romanised as Panjāb or Panj-Āb) is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia. It is located in the northwestern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising areas of modern-day eastern Pakistan and no ...

in 1992. The then commanding officer Colonel (later Major General) PC Kharbanda was awarded the

Sena Medal The Sena Medal () is awarded to members of the Indian army, of all ranks, "for such individual acts of exceptional devotion to duty or courage as have special significance for the Army." Awards may be made posthumously and a bar is authorized for ...

for the operation during which two terrorists were killed. ;

Operation Rakshak Indian Army operations in Jammu and Kashmir include security operations such as Operation ''Rakshak'', which began in 1990, Operation ''Sarp Vinash'' in 2003 and Operation ''Randori Behak'' in ''2020''. Other operations include humanitarian m ...

Between 1998 and 2001, the unit was part of Counter Insurgency Operations in

Jammu and Kashmir Jammu and Kashmir may refer to: * Jammu and Kashmir (union territory), a region administered by India as a union territory since 2019 * Jammu and Kashmir (state), a region administered by India as a state from 1952 to 2019 * Jammu and Kashmir (prin ...

. The unit killed 11 militants and captured one along with considerable arms and ammunition. The unit got nine gallantry awards during this tenure in the form of COAS and GOC-in-C Commendation Cards. ;

Operation Meghdoot Operation Meghdoot was the codename for the Indian Armed Forces operation to take full control of the Siachen Glacier in Ladakh. Executed on the morning of 13 April 1984, it marks the highest battlefield in the world. This operation preempted Pa ...

The regiment was deployed under 3 Infantry Division in

Siachen The Siachen Glacier is a glacier located in the eastern Karakoram range of the Himalayas, just northeast of the point NJ9842 where the Line of Control between India and Pakistan ends in northeastern Kashmir. At long, it is the longest glaci ...

between 2003 and 2005. In addition to its guns in the glacier, a battery each were posted at the

base camp Mountaineering, mountain climbing, or alpinism is a set of outdoor activities that involves ascending mountains. Mountaineering-related activities include traditional outdoor climbing, skiing, and traversing via ferratas that have become sp ...

and at

Turtuk Turtuk is a village and the headquarters of an eponymous Community development block in India, community development block in the Indian union territory of Ladakh. It is a small village sandwiched between the Karakoram, Karakorum Range and the ...

. The unit was awarded the appreciation of the GOC-in-C ( Northern Command) and the GOC, XIV Corps. ;Operation Kosi Prahar In 2008, the

Kosi River The Kosi or Koshi is a transboundary river which flows through China, Nepal and India. It drains the northern slopes of the Himalayas in Tibet and the southern slopes in Nepal. From a major confluence of tributaries north of the Chatra Gorge o ...

broke its embankment causing

floods A flood is an overflow of water (list of non-water floods, or rarely other fluids) that submerges land that is usually dry. In the sense of "flowing water", the word may also be applied to the inflow of the tide. Floods are of significant con ...

in several districts of

Nepal Nepal, officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is mainly situated in the Himalayas, but also includes parts of the Indo-Gangetic Plain. It borders the Tibet Autonomous Region of China Ch ...

and

Bihar Bihar ( ) is a states and union territories of India, state in Eastern India. It is the list of states and union territories of India by population, second largest state by population, the List of states and union territories of India by are ...

. The unit along with two more columns from other artillery units were inducted for flood relief in

Supaul Supaul is a town and municipality that is headquarters of Supaul district in the States and territories of India, Indian state of Bihar. There are 11 blocks under the Supaul district: Supaul, Kishanpur, Saraigarh-Bhaptiyahi, Pipra, Triveniganj, ...

, Bihar on 1 September 2008. ;

Operation Snow Leopard Operation or Operations may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media * ''Operation'' (game), a battery-operated board game that challenges dexterity * Operation (music), a term used in musical set theory * ''Operations'' (magazine), Multi-Man ...

Soldiers from 16 Bihar, 3 Punjab, 3 Medium Regiment and

81 Field Regiment 81 may refer to: * 81 (number) * one of the years 81 BC, AD 81, 1981, 2081 * The international calling code for Japan * Nickname for the Hells Angels Motorcycle Club. "H" is the eighth letter of the alphabet, and "A" is the first. * 81 Terpsichore ...

were involved in a deadly clash with

People's Liberation Army The People's Liberation Army (PLA) is the military of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and the People's Republic of China (PRC). It consists of four Military branch, services—People's Liberation Army Ground Force, Ground Force, People's ...

soldiers at

Galwan valley The Galwan River flows from the disputed Aksai Chin area administered by China to the Union Territory of Ladakh, India. It originates near the caravan camping ground of Samzungling on the eastern side of the Karakoram range and flows west to jo ...

Ladakh Ladakh () is a region administered by India as a union territory and constitutes an eastern portion of the larger Kashmir region that has been the subject of a Kashmir#Kashmir dispute, dispute between India and Pakistan since 1947 and India an ...

on the night of 15 June 2020. 20 Indian soldiers were killed, which included two from the regiment. The regiment captured a Chinese

Colonel Colonel ( ; abbreviated as Col., Col, or COL) is a senior military Officer (armed forces), officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries, a colon ...

during the clash, who was later released by the Indian forces. Havildar Tejinder Singh was awarded the

Vir Chakra The Vir Chakra (pronunciation: ʋ iː ɾ a tʃ a kɾa, ) is an Indian wartime military bravery award presented for acts of gallantry on the battlefield, on land or in the air or at sea. It is third in precedence in wartime gallantry awards and ...

. The

was awarded to Lieutenant Colonel Suraj Bhan Singh and Naib Subedar Harinder Singh and posthumously to Naib Subedars Satnam Singh and Mandeep Singh.

Honours and awards

Shaurya Chakra The Shaurya Chakra () is an Indian military decoration awarded for valour, courageous action or self-sacrifice while not engaged in direct action with the enemy. It may be awarded to civilians as well as military personnel, sometimes posthum ...

– Second Lieutenant JP Joshi

Notable Commanders

* Lieutenant General Jack Farj Rafael Jacob - Chief of staff of the Eastern Command during the Bangladesh Liberation War; GOC-in-C, Eastern Command;

Governor A governor is an politician, administrative leader and head of a polity or Region#Political regions, political region, in some cases, such as governor-general, governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the ...

of the Indian states of

and

. * Major General Lachhman Singh Lehl – Third commanding officer, war hero and military historian * Major General Praveen Chandra Kharbanda – Deputy Commander in Chief,

Strategic Forces Command The Strategic Forces Command (SFC), sometimes called Strategic Nuclear Command, forms part of India's Nuclear Command Authority (NCA). It is responsible for the management and administration of the country's tactical and strategic nuclear we ...

War Cry

The war cry of the regiment is ''Jo Bole So Nihal - Sat Shri Akal''.

Notes

References

{{reflist Military units and formations established in 1956 Artillery regiments of the Indian Army after 1947