A total of 372 new army officers were provided to the Indian army and the armies of friendly nations at the passing out parade of the Indian Military Academy (IMA) when officers cadets passed out of its famed portals here on Saturday. The passing out contingent belonged to 153 regular and 136 technical graduate course and included 29 officer cadets from 12 friendly foreign countries.

 A marker’s call made from atop the historic Chetwode Hall marked the commencement of the parade.  The parade marched in perfect harmony to the tunes of Colonel Bogey, Sare Jahan Se Accha and  Kadam Kadam Badhaye Ja. 

The synergy and enthusiasm of the cadets during the parade was appreciated by the audience which consisted of military officers and family members of the newly commissioned officers. 

The chief of defence staff (CDS), Sri Lanka Army General Shavendra Silva was chief guest and Reviewing Officer (RO) of the PoP. A ceremonial guard of honour was presented by the parade to him. 

He congratulated the officer cadets on successful completion of their training at IMA. He also complimented the instructors and officer cadets for the parade, turnout as well as the crisp, synergised drill movements indicating standards of training and discipline imbibed by the young leaders. He said, “You are just a step away from the historic and magnificent moment of your commissioning into the most elite forces."

The RO presented the prestigious Sword of Honour and the gold medal for standing first in order of merit in the regular course to Gaurav Yadav.  The silver medal for standing second in overall merit in the regular course was handed over to Sourabh Badhani while the bronze medal for standing third in order of merit was presented to Alok Singh.   In the Technical Graduate Course, Ajay Pant was presented with a silver medal for standing first in overall merit.  Sailesh Bhatta of Nepal was bestowed with a Bangladesh medal for being the best Foreign Gentlemen Cadet (FGC) of the POC.  The Chief of Army Staff banner was handed over to the Kohima company for standing first among 12 companies of the academy in the autumn term- 2023. 

When the marching contingent entered the Chetwode building for the ceremonial Antim Pag (last step) it marked the metamorphosis of GCs into an officer of the Indian Army from a cadet of academy. 

After reviewing the parade, the CDS, Sri Lanka Army, laid wreaths and offered floral tributes to pay homage to the brave alumni of the prestigious training academy. In the pipping ceremony, the parents of the newly commissioned officers placed epaulets on their shoulders. The reviewing officer exhorted all to dedicate themselves to the service of the nation.