Army Chief empowered to muster territorial Army
Amid the ongoing tensions with Pakistan, the Ministry of Defence has empowered the Indian Army Chief to muster the Territorial Army.
Exercising powers under the Territorial Army Rule 1948, the MoD has empowered the Chief of the Indian Army to exercise powers. The notification says the Chief can “call out every officer and every enrolled person of the Territorial Army to provide for essential guard or to be embodied for the purpose of supporting or supplementing the regular Army”.
Out of the existing 32 Infantry Battalions (Territorial Army), the Army Chief has been empowered to embody 14 Infantry Battalions of the TA for deployment in the areas of Southern Command, Eastern Command, Western Command, Central Command, Northern Command, South Western Command, Andaman and Nicobar Command and Army Training Command (ARTRAC).
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For the Territorial Army units embodied at the behest of other Ministries, the cost will be debited to the respective Ministries and will not be included in the budget allocation of the Ministry of Defence, the notification added.
This order shall remain in force for three years with effect till February 2028.
The Territorial Army is, under the administrative control of the Department of Military Affairs chaired by the Chief of Defence Staff.
The Territorial Army is like a reserve force. People enrolled in the TA can be holding regular jobs outside the forces and be called in case of exigency. It can get officers from the regular Army too.
The TA is headed by a Lieutenant General rank officer.
