The
trooping of Colours took place for the first time in the history of
independent India during the Mahar Regiment’s diamond jubilee
celebrations. The regimental colour of the Mahar Regiment is dull cherry
(maroon) while its regimental badge is embroidered in the centre of the
Colours, having a single wreath composed of Ashoka leaves and lotus
flowers embroidered beneath the wreath.
So
far, the President has awarded nine battle honours to the Mahar Regiment
for the special services rendered by the units after independence in
different wars. These battle honours are emblazoned on the Regimental
Colours. The Colours were first presented by the then President, Mr V V
Giri to the Mahar Regiment’s fourteen battalions and the Regimental
Centre on February 3, 1970 at Saugor in Madhya Pradesh. On February 28,
1976, Gen T N Raina, the then Chief of the Army Staff presented Colours to
15 Mahar at Bangalore. The 17th and 18th Mahar received their Colours from
the then Chief of the Army Staff, Gen K V Krishna Rao on November 9, 1981
at Saugor. Finally, 19 Mahar, the baby of the Regiment, received the
Colours from Gen Shankar Roychowdhury, the then Army Chief on March 11,
1997.
Although
Colours have been carried into battle since feudal times, the tradition of
military "Colours" as we know them today dates back to the 1700’s
when the practice of "trooping the Colours" began during the
time of Charles II. It became customary to carry these Colours (the
brightly-coloured flags of a battalion) to be used as rallying points in a
way that they would be visible above the smog (powder smoke) and dust of
battle, down the ranks at the end of a day’s march and to solemnly
accompany them to the "billet" where they were kept for the
night.
