AS a part of wider defence cuts in the UK, 140 Gurkhas serving in the British Army are being made redundant with immediate effect, a British Embassy statement said here on Thursday.

“In the first of four tranches, some 140 Gurkhas have been told today that they have been selected for redundancy,” the statement said. The decision is part of the British Army’s long-term plan to reduce its army strength to 93,000 by 2015 from the current 100,000. Although, the redundancies are categorised as compulsory and voluntary, all Nepali servicemen have been asked for compulsory departure. Of the total 260 armymen to be deemed compulsorily redundant, 140 are Gurkhas, UK’s The Guardian newspaper reported on Thursday. A total of 930 servicemen of the Royal Air Force (RAF) and 920 of the army will be part of the first phase of the British Government’s redundancy programme. The Guardian also said the redundancy plan is “heavily imbalanced against the Gurkhas and the number of Gurkhas deemed redundant is disproportionate.” The redundancy programmes of the Ministry of Defence (MoD) have already dealt with a lot of fire in the UK with critics labelling the decisions as harsh for servicemen who fought under gruelling circumstances and accusing the government of failing to set the right priorities, the paper reported. The British Embassy said that since Nepali servicemen in the Brigade of Gurkhas have increased in number due to the change in rules in 2007 which allows for longer service periods, there is a higher ratio of Nepali soldiers deemed redundant. The embassy also said that all servicemen deemed redundant will be given a 12-month notice and a period of resettlement. Although older members of the Gurkha Brigade are being deemed redundant, the brigade will continue the service of its younger faithful.

Published on: 2 September 2011 | The Kathmandu Post