[2][1][3] Soldiering has been an important profession of the Kumaonis and the region has a long history of warfare with neighbours, including the Nepal and Garhwal.

[5] His first action, on arriving in India in 1798, was to effect the disbandment of the Indian units of the Nizam under the command of Monsieur Raymond and officered by non-British Europeans.

In addition, two battalions known as the Elichpur Brigade, were raised by Nawab Salabat Khan, Subedar of Berar, as a part of the Nizam's forces.

The Hyderabad Contingent, with its mixed Kumaoni, Jats, Ahirs and Deccan Muslims, continued and fought with distinction in the Great War.

[6] The Kumaon Rifles were based in Hong Kong at the beginning of the Second World War but were transferred to the Middle East as part of the 24th Indian Infantry Brigade.

Although the battalion performed well in the fighting retreat in north-west Malaya, they were practically annihilated at the disastrous Battle of Slim River on 7 January 1942.

On 21 October 1962, the Chinese attacked the Dhola sector in Arunachal Pradesh's Kameng Division at a post at Kibithu (40 km away from Walong).

The battle started by Chinese machine guns and mortars fire from south of Sama, followed by infantry attacks on two platoons with over 3000 soldiers.

[9] "23 October marks a landmark win against the 153 Regt of PLA (Chengdu Sub area) when Delta Company of 6 Kumaon under Lt Bikram Singh Rathore (IC 11867) was ordered to establish screen position on Ashi Hill (NH 5484).

Lt. Bikram Singh planned and executed a classic ambush at a small hanging bridge over Namti Nallah (5 km away from Walong).

At 3 a.m. on 23 October, the Chinese Army marching towards Walong walked down Ashi hill to reach the hanging bridge on Namti Nullah.

[10] [11][12] After the success at Namti Nullah, The Delta Company of 6 Kumaon was tasked to occupy critical defenses on "West Ridge" overlooking the Advanced Landing Grounds, Walong.

On 5 November, there were multiple exchanges of fire between the Indian and the Chinese troops when a company under then Captain Ravi Mathur was asked to occupy Green Pimple and rescue an Assam Rifles patrol which was ambushed in the area.

On 14 November 1962, 6 Kumaon attacked and captured Chinese defenses in the Walong sector, Arunachal Pradesh, without any artillery or aerial support.

The attack continued until 15 November but the captured positions could not be sustained because of a lack of ammunition, heavy casualties and large enemy buildup.

The main Battle of Walong[14] was on 16 November, when a large number of soldiers of the PLA 130 division launched an offensive on approx.

In 1986 (almost 24 years after the Battle of Walong) a patrol party of the 6th Battalion of The Assam Regiment climbed up to West Ridge and discovered the skeletal remains of the soldiers of Delta Company of 6 Kumaon who died fighting on 16 November 1962.

A lot of war relics such as helmets, LMG magazines, water bottles and used/burnt ammunition and a pair of binoculars (possibly of the company commander, Lt. Bikram Singh) were also found on the site.

[21] The Patrol party of 6th Assam Regiment cremated the bodies of at least 37 soldiers of Delta Company and kept their ashes in a make shift memorial on the West Ridge.

[26][27] The area assigned to C Company was defended by three platoon positions, but the surrounding terrain isolated 13 Kumaon from the rest of the regiment.

At 3:15 AM, the battalion's A Coy, led by Major Dhirendra Nath Singh, charged the enemy post at Keri and captured it after a fierce hand-to-hand fight.

The Battalion was also awarded four Mentioned in Dispatches and four Chief of the Army Staff Commendation Cards during these operations and was bestowed with the Theatre Honour 'Punjab'.

[32] To preempt Pakistani attacks into India, a Kumaon battalion advanced into the Mandiala Heights in West Pakistan at the end of August 1965.

Before they had the chance to set up any defenses, the Pakistan Army began a major offensive in the Chhamb sector during the early hours of 1 September, accompanied by massive artillery shelling targeting the Kumaon battalion's positions.

[33] The Indian Army's initiative to hold the Siachen Glacier consisted of units of the Kumaon Regiment and the Ladakh Scouts.

Khanna, marched on foot with full packs and equipment for weeks in the dead of the winter across Zoji La, through the world's toughest terrain, highest altitudes and most forbidding climate.

Among the areas in which Kumaon units were deployed and operated included Kilividdi of Muttur Sector, Sampur, Vellvutturai and Point Pedro.

Kumaon units were deployed during Operation Vijay to oust Pakistan Army regulars who had infiltrated the Kargil sector in Ladakh posing as insurgents.

The list of battle and theatre honours of the Kumaon Regiment are as follows:[38] Pre-World War I: [nb 1] Nagpore* – Maheidpoor* – Nowah* – Central India* – Burma 1885–87* – China 1900 – Afghanistan 1919.

World War I: Neuve Chapelle – France and Flanders 1914–15 – Suez Canal – Egypt 19l5–16 – Gaza – Jerusalem – Megiddo – Sharon – Nablus – Palestine 1917–18 – Tigris 1916 – Khan Baghdadi – Mesopotamia 1915–18 – Persia 1915–18 – Suvla – Landing at Suvla – Scimitar Hill – Gallipoli 1915 – Macedonia 1916–18 – East Africa 1914–16 – North-West Frontier India 1914–15, 1916–17.