The 14th raising day anniversary of the 21st Battalion of the Kumaon Regiment was celebrated at its location somewhere in the Central Sector.

A special sainik sammelan presided over by Lt Col Veerendra Nangia, Commanding Officer, was the highlight on this occasion. Addressing all ranks at the sammelan, Lt Col Nangia called upon them to acquire better professional competence. He also complimented men for their devotion to duty.

As part of the celebrations, "best’’ JCOs and ORs were felicitated and prizes to winners of various inter-company competitions were distributed. "B" Company which won kabaddi, volleyball, interior economy and BOC also won the overall Championship Trophy and also the Commanding Officer’s Banner. The coveted trophy for the victorious team was received by Lt A V Singh. The banner was handed over by Sub Bhim Bahadur Chand of "A" Company to Sub Sube Singh of the recipient "B" Company. Earlier, at a solemn ceremony at the battalion war memorial, floral tributes were paid to the soldiers who made the supreme sacrifice.

A fauji mela held on the occasion was inaugurated by the wife of Brig Shyamlal, Commander of the Infantry Brigade. A barakhana, a social evening and pagal gymkhana sports also formed part of the two-day celebrations.

The youngest battalion of the Kumaon Regiment, the 21st Kumaon, was raised on November 5, 1987 at Haldwani by the then Lt Col (now Maj Gen) K P Nanjappa. The battalion has served in almost all parts of the country. Present Commanding Officer, Lt Col V Nangia and Capt Kailash Sagar received Sena Medal while Col Prakash Bhatt received one Mentioned-in-Despatch for bravery in operation Pawan. In addition, the battalion received one Vir Chakra, 10 Commendation Cards from the Army Chief and six from Army Commanders.

Hav Harish Chandra Singh of the battalion was awarded a Commendation Card from the GOC-in-C, Central Command, for securing third position in the XXXIII National Shooting Championship held at Chennai.