The Bharat Scouts and Guides (BSG) is the national

Scouting Scouting or the Scout Movement is a youth social movement, movement which became popularly established in the first decade of the twentieth century. It follows the Scout method of informal education with an emphasis on practical outdoor activi ...

and Guiding association of India. The national headquarters of BSG is recognised by the

Government of India The Government of India (ISO 15919, ISO: Bhārata Sarakāra, legally the Union Government or Union of India or the Central Government) is the national authority of the Republic of India, located in South Asia, consisting of States and union t ...

. Scouting was founded in India in 1909 as an overseas branch of

the Scout Association The Scout Association is the largest organisation in the Scout Movement in the Scouting in the United Kingdom, United Kingdom. Following the rapid development of the Scouting, Scout Movement from 1907, The Scout Association was formed in 1910 ...

and became a member of the

World Organization of the Scout Movement The World Organization of the Scout Movement (WOSM ) is the largest and, after the Order of World Scouts (formed in 1911), is the second-oldest international organization in the Scout Movement, having been established in 1922. It has 176 members. ...

in 1938. Guiding in India started in 1911 and was amongst the founder members of the

World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts The World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts (WAGGGS ) is a global association that supports Girl Guides, female-oriented and female-only Guiding and Scouting organizations in 153 countries. It was established in the year 1928 in Parád, H ...

in 1928, also covering present-day

Bangladesh Bangladesh, officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, eighth-most populous country in the world and among the List of countries and dependencies by ...

and

Pakistan Pakistan, officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the Islam by country# ...

at that time. The BSG serves 3,835,094 Scouts (as of 2021) and 1,286,161 Guides (as of 2005).

History

Boy Scouts

Scouting was officially founded in

British India The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance in South Asia. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one form or another ...

in 1909, first starting at the

Bishop Cotton Boys' School Bishop Cotton Boys' School is an all-boys school for boarders and day scholars in Bengaluru, India, founded in the memory of Bishop George Edward Lynch Cotton, Bishop of Calcutta. The school is bordered by Residency Road, St Mark's Road, L ...

Bangalore Bengaluru, also known as Bangalore (List of renamed places in India#Karnataka, its official name until 1 November 2014), is the Capital city, capital and largest city of the southern States and union territories of India, Indian state of Kar ...

. Scouting for native Indians was started by Justice Vivian Bose,

Madan Mohan Madanamohana () is an epithet of the Hindu deity Krishna. It translates as, "he whose charm (''mohana'') bewilders even the god of love ('' madana'')". The epithet describes the powerful nature of the attraction for the deity from his devotees, e ...

, Hridayanath Kunzru, Girija Shankar Bajpai,

Annie Besant Annie Besant (; Wood; 1 October 1847 – 20 September 1933) was an English socialist, Theosophy (Blavatskian), theosophist, freemason, women's rights and Home Rule activist, educationist and campaigner for Indian nationalism. She was an arden ...

and George Arundale, in 1913. Prior to this date, Scouting was open only for British and foreign Scouts. In 1916, a Cub section was started, followed by the

Rover Rover may refer to: People Name * Constance Rover (1910–2005), English historian * Jolanda de Rover (born 1963), Dutch swimmer * Rover Thomas (c. 1920–1998), Indigenous Australian artist Stage name * Rover (musician), French singer-songw ...

section in 1918. In 1916,

Calcutta Kolkata, also known as Calcutta (List of renamed places in India#West Bengal, its official name until 2001), is the capital and largest city of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of West Bengal. It lies on the eastern ba ...

's Senior Deputy Commissioner of Police J. S. Wilson introduced ''Scouting for Boys'' as a textbook in the Calcutta Police Training School. Colonel Wilson volunteered his services to the District Scout Commissioner, Alfred Pickford, and in 1917 became Assistant Scoutmaster of the Old Mission Church Troop. Together the two struggled for the admission of Indian boys into the Boy Scouts Association, which had not been admitted due to a

order against it because "Scouting might train them to become revolutionaries". Shortly Wilson was acting as Cubmaster and Scoutmaster, and succeeded Pickford as District Commissioner in May 1919 when Pickford was promoted to Chief Scout Commissioner for India. As a way of getting around the Government Order, the ''Boy Scouts of Bengal'' was founded, with identical aims and methods. Many separate Scout organizations began to spring up, the ''Indian Boy Scouts Association'', founded in 1916, based in

Madras Chennai, also known as Madras ( its official name until 1996), is the capital and largest city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost state of India. It is located on the Coromandel Coast of the Bay of Bengal. According to the 2011 Indian ce ...

and headed by Annie Besant and George Arundale; ''Boy Scouts of

Mysore Mysore ( ), officially Mysuru (), is a city in the southern Indian state of Karnataka. It is the headquarters of Mysore district and Mysore division. As the traditional seat of the Wadiyar dynasty, the city functioned as the capital of the ...

''; ''Boy Scouts of

Baroda Vadodara (), also known as Baroda, is a city situated on the banks of the Vishwamitri River in the Indian state of Gujarat. It serves as the administrative headquarters of the Vadodara district. The city is named for its abundance of banyan ...

''; ''

Nizam Nizam of Hyderabad was the title of the ruler of Hyderabad State ( part of the Indian state of Telangana, and the Kalyana-Karnataka region of Karnataka). ''Nizam'' is a shortened form of (; ), and was the title bestowed upon Asaf Jah I ...

's Scouts'' in

Hyderabad Hyderabad is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Telangana. It occupies on the Deccan Plateau along the banks of the Musi River (India), Musi River, in the northern part of Southern India. With an average altitude of , much ...

; '' Seva Samiti Scout Association'' (Humanity Uplift Service Society), founded in 1917 by Madan Mohan Malaviya and Hridayanath Kunzru and based in

Allahabad Prayagraj (, ; ISO 15919, ISO: ), formerly and colloquially known as Allahabad, is a metropolis in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh.The other five cities were: Agra, Kanpur, Kanpur (Cawnpore), Lucknow, Meerut, and Varanasi, Varanasi (Benar ...

; the aforementioned ''Boy Scouts of

Bengal Bengal ( ) is a Historical geography, historical geographical, ethnolinguistic and cultural term referring to a region in the Eastern South Asia, eastern part of the Indian subcontinent at the apex of the Bay of Bengal. The region of Benga ...

'' and likely others. A conference was held in Calcutta in August 1920 in which Wilson staged a Scout Rally, and as a result the

Viceroy of India The governor-general of India (1833 to 1950, from 1858 to 1947 the viceroy and governor-general of India, commonly shortened to viceroy of India) was the representative of the monarch of the United Kingdom in their capacity as the Emperor of ...

sent an invitation to Lord Baden-Powell, by then Chief Scout of the World, to visit India. Lord and Lady Baden-Powell arrived in

Bombay Mumbai ( ; ), also known as Bombay ( ; its official name until 1995), is the capital city of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of Maharashtra. Mumbai is the financial centre, financial capital and the list of cities i ...

in late January 1921 for a short tour of the subcontinent before leaving Calcutta for

Rangoon Yangon, formerly romanized as Rangoon, is the capital of the Yangon Region and the largest city of Myanmar. Yangon was the List of capitals of Myanmar, capital of Myanmar until 2005 and served as such until 2006, when the State Peace and Dev ...

. Alfred Pickford accompanied them and became one of their closest friends.

The result of this visit was a union of all of the Scout organizations except the Seva Samiti Scout Association into The Boy Scouts Association in India. In 1922 Pickford returned to England and was appointed Overseas Commissioner of The Boy Scouts Association at their headquarters in London, but his aim of adding Indian boys into the program had been fulfilled. In 1938, a number of members left the Boy Scouts Association in India after a wave of nationalism. They formed – together with the Seva Samiti Scout Association and the newly founded ''India National Scout Association'' – the Hindustan Scout Association, the first coeducational Scouting and Guiding organisation in India. In the same year, the Boy Scouts Association in India became a member of the World Organization of the Scout Movement.

Girl Guides

The first Girl Guides company was founded in

Jabalpur Jabalpur, formerly Jubbulpore, is a city situated on the banks of Narmada River in the state of Madhya Pradesh, India. It is the 3rd-largest urban agglomeration of the state and the 38th-largest of the country. Jabalpur is the administrative h ...

in 1911 at Christ Church School. The movement immediately grew: In 1915, more than fifty companies existed with a membership of over 1,200, all of them directly registered with the Girl Guide Association and all restricted to girls of European descent. These companies formed the All India Girl Guides Association in 1916. In the same year the organisation opened for Indian girls. J. S. Wilson provided transportation for Girl Guide rallies.

The girls themselves were never quite sure whether they preferred to ride in police vans or in the riot truck. The former concealed them from public view, but were very hot; the latter, being cages of expanded metal, were cooler, but reminiscent of the Calcutta Zoo!

In 1928, the ''All India Girl Guides Association'' joined the World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts as one of its founder members. This membership was renewed in 1948 after the independence of India and its partition.

Bharat Scouts and Guides

In the first years after India's independence leading politicians, including

Jawaharlal Nehru Jawaharlal Nehru (14 November 1889 – 27 May 1964) was an Indian anti-colonial nationalist, secular humanist, social democrat, and statesman who was a central figure in India during the middle of the 20th century. Nehru was a pr ...

, Maulana Abul Kalam Azad and Mangal Das Pakvasa, as well as Scout leaders tried to unify India's Scouts and Guides. A first success was the merger of the ''Boy Scouts Association in India'' and the ''Hindustan Scout Association'' forming the Bharat Scouts and Guides on 7 November 1950. About a year later, on 15 August 1951, the ''All India Girl Guides Association'' joined this new organisation. In 1959, the 17th World Scout Conference in New Delhi was hosted by the BSG. The Sangam World Girl Guide/Girl Scout Center in

Pune Pune ( ; , ISO 15919, ISO: ), previously spelled in English as Poona (List of renamed Indian cities and states#Maharashtra, the official name until 1978), is a city in the state of Maharashtra in the Deccan Plateau, Deccan plateau in Western ...

Maharashtra Maharashtra () is a state in the western peninsular region of India occupying a substantial portion of the Deccan Plateau. It is bordered by the Arabian Sea to the west, the Indian states of Karnataka and Goa to the south, Telangana to th ...

, India, opened in 1966. The idea for this fourth World Centre dates back to 1956 when it was developed during a WAGGGS International commissioners' meeting in

New Delhi New Delhi (; ) is the Capital city, capital of India and a part of the Delhi, National Capital Territory of Delhi (NCT). New Delhi is the seat of all three branches of the Government of India, hosting the Rashtrapati Bhavan, New Parliament ...

. The

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...

selected the Bharat Scouts and Guides as honorary "Peace Messengers" for their significant and concrete contributions to the

International Year of Peace The International Year of Peace was recognized in 1986 by the United Nations. It was first proposed during the UN conference of November 1981 by the United Nations Economic and Social Council, with a date associated with the fortieth anniversary of ...

in 1986.

Sethna's 18th West Bombay Scout Group

Sethna's 18th West Bombay Scout Group is the oldest continuously running Scout Group in India. It was established in 1914, when Rustomji Edulji Sethna (1898–1954) came across the book ''

Scouting for Boys ''Scouting for Boys: A handbook for instruction in good citizenship'' is a book on Boy Scout training, published in various editions since 1908. Early editions were written and illustrated by Robert Baden-Powell with later editions being exten ...

'', written by Robert Baden-Powell, the founder of the Scout movement. He was enamoured by the book and formed one of India's first Scout groups for native boys. Prior to that, there existed some Scout groups, but they were primarily for the British expatriates in India. Sethna resisted joining one of the competing Scout associations and registering his troop until Scouting became open for all irrespective of color, caste, or creed. He wrote to Baden-Powell about this discrepancy. In 1921 the regulations were changed and all were allowed to become part of the Scout movement in India. The 18th West has been continuously running since the day it started. None of the World Wars or the

Partition of India The partition of India in 1947 was the division of British India into two independent dominion states, the Dominion of India, Union of India and Dominion of Pakistan. The Union of India is today the Republic of India, and the Dominion of Paki ...

stopped the group from functioning.

Notable members

Vivian Bose was a member of the

World Scout Committee The World Organization of the Scout Movement (WOSM ) is the largest and, after the Order of World Scouts (formed in 1911), is the second-oldest international organization in the Scout Movement, having been established in 1922. It has 176 members. ...

of the World Organization of the Scout Movement from 1947 until 1949. In 1969, Mrs. Lakshmi Mazumdar was awarded the ''

Bronze Wolf The Bronze Wolf Award is an award presented by the World Organization of the Scout Movement for outstanding service by an individual to the Scout Movement. Just over 400 people have received the Bronze Wolf since its creation in 1935. WOSM has r ...

'', the only distinction of the

, awarded by the World Scout Committee for exceptional services to world Scouting.

Program

The association describes its aims in its mission: :''The mission of Scouting is to contribute to the education of young people, through a value system based on the Scout Promise and Law to help build a better world where people are self-fulfilled as individuals and play a constructive role in society.'' Scout and Guide units are separate although they have some coeducational activities such as Jamborees, rallies, and conferences. Differently-abled boys and girls also participate in the Scouting program. The Scout emblem incorporates a wheel with twenty-four spokes, known as the ''Ashoka Chakra'', taken from the

Ashoka pillar The pillars of Ashoka are a series of Monolith, monolithic columns dispersed throughout the Indian subcontinent, erected—or at least inscribed with Edicts of Ashoka, edicts—by the 3rd Mauryan Emperor Ashoka the Great, who reigned from to ...

Sarnath Sarnath (also known as Deer Park, ''Sarangnath'', ''Isipatana Deer Park'', ''Rishipattana'', ''Migadaya'', or ''Mrigadava'')Gabe Hiemstra, "Buddha Chronicle 24: Kassapa Buddhavaṃsa". ''Wisdom Library'', 14 September 2019. is a town nort ...

, in the

green Green is the color between cyan and yellow on the visible spectrum. It is evoked by light which has a dominant wavelength of roughly 495570 nm. In subtractive color systems, used in painting and color printing, it is created by a com ...

-and-

saffron Saffron () is a spice derived from the flower of '' Crocus sativus'', commonly known as the "saffron crocus". The vivid crimson stigma and styles, called threads, are collected and dried for use mainly as a seasoning and colouring agent ...

colors of the

flag of India The national flag of India, Colloquialism, colloquially called Tiraṅgā (the tricolour), is a horizontal rectangular tricolour flag, the colours being of India Saffron (color)#Political & religious uses, saffron, white and Variations of gree ...

Sections and branches

The association is divided in four (respective three) sections according to age: Bunnies (Both Boys and Girls) - ages 3 to 5 ;Bharat Scouts * Cubs - boys, ages 5 to 10 *

Scouts Scouting or the Scout Movement is a youth social movement, movement which became popularly established in the first decade of the twentieth century. It follows the Scout method of informal education with an emphasis on practical outdoor activi ...

- boys, ages 10 to 17 * Rovers - boys, ages 17 to 25 ;Bharat Guides * Bulbuls - girls, ages 5 to 10 *

Guides A guide is a person who leads travelers, sportspeople, or tourists through unknown or unfamiliar locations. The term can also be applied to a person who leads others to more abstract goals such as knowledge or wisdom. Travel and recreation Exp ...

- girls, ages 10 to 17 *

Rangers A ranger is typically someone in a law enforcement or military/paramilitary role specializing in patrolling a given territory, called "ranging" or "scouting". The term most often refers to: * Park ranger or forest ranger, a person charged with prot ...

- girls, ages 17 to 25 Additionally, there are four special branches: * Extension Scouting *

Sea Scout Sea Scouts are a part of the Scout movement, with a particular emphasis on boating and other water-based activities on the sea, rivers or lakes (canoeing, rafting, scuba, sailboarding). Sea Scouts can provide a chance to sail, cruise on boats, ...

ing * Air Scouting * Venture Club Scheme

Awards

The highest awards are * for the Cubs/Bulbuls section the "Golden Arrow Award" * for the Scout/Guide section the Rashtrapati Scout/Guide Award * for the Rover/Ranger section the Rashtrapati Rover/Ranger Award

Scout/Guide Motto

* Bunnies - Keep smiling * Cubs/Bulbuls - Do your best * Scouts/Guides - Be Prepared! * Rovers/Rangers - Service

Scout/Guide Promise

"On my honor I promise that I will do my best To do my duty to God and my country To help other people and To obey the Scout law."

Scout and Guide Law

# A Scout/Guide is trustworthy # A Scout/Guide is loyal # A Scout/Guide is a friend to all and a brother/sister to every other Scout/Guide. # A Scout/Guide is courteous # A Scout/Guide is a friend to animals and loves nature. # A Scout/Guide is disciplined and helps to protect public property. # A Scout/Guide is courageous. # A Scout/Guide is thrifty. # A Scout/Guide is pure in thought, word and deed.

Membership

Leadership

Presidents

# Mangal Das Pakvasa 1953 to November 1960 # Ammu Swaminathan November 1960 to March 1965 # Justice Bhuvaneshwar Prasad Sinha April 1965 to February 1967 # Sir Chandulal M. Trivedi February 1967 to October 1973 #

Dharma Vira Dharma Vira (20 January 1906 – 16 September 2000) was an Indian civil servant and politician who served as the governor of Punjab, Haryana, West Bengal and Karnataka. Vira also served as a Cabinet Secretary of the Government of India. Early li ...

November 1973 to September 1976 #

Jagjivan Ram Jagjivan Ram (5 April 1908 – 6 July 1986), popularly known as Babuji, was an Indian independence activist and politician who served as a minister with various portfolios for over 30 years, making him the List of longest-serving members of the ...

September 1976 to April 1983 #

Shankarrao Chavan Shankarrao Bhavrao Chavan (14 July 1920 – 26 February 2004) was an Indian politician who served as the chief minister of Maharashtra twice from 1975 until 1977 and from 13 March 1986 until 26 June 1988. Early life and family Chavan was bor ...

April 1983 to November 1998 # Rameshwar Thakur November 1998 to November 2001 #

Sharad Pawar Sharadchandra Govindrao Pawar (, pronunciation: Help:IPA/Marathi, �əɾəd̪ pəʋaːɾ born 12 December 1940) is an Indian politician. Pawar served as the Chief Minister of Maharashtra for four terms and in the Union Council of Ministers ...

November 2001 to November 2004 # Rameshwar Thakur November 2004 to November 2013 #

Ashok Gehlot Ashok Gehlot (born 3 May 1951) is an Indian politician who served as the Chief Minister of Rajasthan from 1998 to December 2003, then again from 2008 to December 2013, and later from 2018 to December 2023. He represents Sardarpura (Vidhan Sabha ...

November 2013 to November 2016 # Dr. Anil Jain November 2016 to present

Chief National Commissioners

# Dr. Hridya Nath Kunzru 1952 to November 1957 # Justice Vivian Bose November 1957 to November 1959 # Professor

November 1959 to November 1960 # Dr. Hridya Nath Kunzru November 1960 to November 1964 # Mrs. Lakhshmi Mazumdar November 1964 to April 1983 # Lakshman Singh April 1983 to November 1992 # V.P. Deenadayalu Naidu November 1992 to November 1995 # Lalit Mohan Jain November 1995 to November 2013 # Bhaidas I. Nagarale November 2013 to 25 May 2017 # Dr. Krishana Kumar Khandelwal 9 July 2017 to present *Title of National Commissioner changed to Chief National Commissioner on 30 November 2014

Overseas units

The BSG maintains units for Indian citizens in

Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in West Asia. Located in the centre of the Middle East, it covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula and has a land area of about , making it the List of Asian countries ...

Qatar Qatar, officially the State of Qatar, is a country in West Asia. It occupies the Geography of Qatar, Qatar Peninsula on the northeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula in the Middle East; it shares Qatar–Saudi Arabia border, its sole land b ...

Oman Oman, officially the Sultanate of Oman, is a country located on the southeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula in West Asia and the Middle East. It shares land borders with Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Yemen. Oman’s coastline ...

United Arab Emirates The United Arab Emirates (UAE), or simply the Emirates, is a country in West Asia, in the Middle East, at the eastern end of the Arabian Peninsula. It is a Federal monarchy, federal elective monarchy made up of Emirates of the United Arab E ...

, and

Yemen Yemen, officially the Republic of Yemen, is a country in West Asia. Located in South Arabia, southern Arabia, it borders Saudi Arabia to Saudi Arabia–Yemen border, the north, Oman to Oman–Yemen border, the northeast, the south-eastern part ...

Notes

References

Literature

* ''Scouting 'Round the World'', John S. Wilson, first edition, Blandford Press 1959 page 203.

External links

*
Sethnas 18th West Bombay Scout Group
India's oldest continuously running Scout troop {{DEFAULTSORT:Bharat Scouts And Guides World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts member organizations World Organization of the Scout Movement member organizations Scouting and Guiding in India Youth organizations established in 1950 Organisations based in Delhi 1950 establishments in India Child-related organisations in India 1909 establishments in India Youth organizations established in 1909