Gen Singh attends AEC diamond jubilee in MP

Hoshangabad, MP, June 1 (UNI) Chief of Army Staff General Joginder Jaswant Singh today highlighted the key contribution of the Army Education Corps (AEC) on the latter's diamond jubilee.

''The Corps has proved crucial to the Army over six decades,'' he said in this district's scenic hill station Pachmarhi while addressing -- as Chief Guest -- the Corps' officers, other ranks and veterans.

In 1922, the British established the Army School of Education at Belgaum on the lines of the Royal Army Education Corps. At the time of Independence, 90 per cent Indian soldiers were uneducated. Steps were taken for educating personnel of the Army, Navy and Air Force and the AEC came into existence on June 1, 1947.

General as well as military education are being provided at Pachmarhi including training in regional and foreign languages besides English and Hindi. A Military School of Music was set up on April 24, 1950. Soldiers of friendly nations also train there besides Army and paramilitary forces' personnel.

According to the web site bharat-rakshak.com, since the termination of British power in India, the various bands of the Indian Army had to be re-oriented to render them truly Indian. It was no easy task as, after Partition, several bandsmen of various units opted for Pakistan.

The School was established under the distinguished patronage of Field Marshal K M Kariappa, who was the then Commander-in-Chief of the Indian Army. In the early years, Indian Army bandsmen had to play western martial tunes as suitable native scores did not exist.

Gradually a small group of composers sprang up who composed martial music appropriate for these bands, based on folklore of regions that contributed most to the strength of the Indian defence forces. Thus, the folklore of Punjab, Rajasthan, Marwar, Garhwal and the Konkan coast have inspired Indian composers.

UNI