Nepal - Pokhara - British Gurkha recruits pose for official portrait

New recruits of the British Royal Gurkha Regiment parade before taking official oaths on the Union Jack flag at their army camp in Pokhara, Nepal after recently being recruited into the regiment after a gruelling series of tests to eliminate the weaker and less able candidates, before the 160 lucky candidates travel to the UK for basic training. 60,000 boys aged between 17-22 (or 25 for those educated enough to become clerks or communications specialists) report to designated recruiting stations in the hills each November, most living from altitudes ranging from 4,000-12,000 feet. After initial selection, 7,000 are accepted for further tests from which 700 are sent down here to Pokhara in the shadow of the Himalayas. Nepal has been supplying youth for the British army since the Indian Mutiny of 1857.

Filename

gurkha_inspection-16-01-1997.jpg

Copyright

Richard Baker

Image Size

5455x3560 / 4.4MB

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Gurkha Selection