Cut The Clutter: Fallout for Gorkha battalions as Nepal halts Army recruitment. Agnipath hurdle & 200-year tradition

 The Nepalese government has taken issue with the Modi government’s Agnipath scheme for short-term military service. This has exacerbated a shortage in the Army’s numbers that have dwindled sharply on account of a 3-year lull in recruitment. In Ep 1265 of Cut The Clutter, Editor-in-Chief Shekhar Gupta explains why Nepal has objected to the scheme, and discusses the long tradition of Gorkhas in the Indian Army — which today comprise seven regiments adding up to 40 battalions — as well as the concept of ‘martial races’.