A motorcycle rally conducted by the ‘Rhino Riders’ to mark the 60th raising day of the Headquarters 101 Area of the Indian Army’s Eastern Command was flagged off today by Governor Phagu Chauhan.
The rally began at the Rhino Training Complex here.
HQ 101 Area was raised on April 22, 1963 in the wake of the Sino-Indian War the previous year. It provides logistics support across the entire North East and was also the first Army force to reach Dhaka during the 1971 war against Pakistan.
The Governor lauded 101 Area for its unique distinction of having taken part in active combat operations in spite of being a logistics formation. He recalled the crowning glory of 101 Area being the first amongst all Indian forces to have entered Dhaka on the morning of December 16, 1971 and playing a leading role in the war for liberation of Bangladesh. He complimented the formation for its stellar contribution towards infrastructure development and logistics which has aided nation building both during war and peace.
Congratulating the motorcycle team for embarking on the challenging and prestigious rally, Chauhan lauded the intent to reach out to youth to motivate them to join the Army as well as to meet veterans and war widows in the North East.
The motorcycle rally team, led by Col Pankaj Chaturvedi, will travel through Meghalaya, Assam, Mizoram, Manipur, Nagaland and Arunachal Pradesh.