M A I N   N E W S

Himachal cadet bags Sword of Honour
Tribune News Service

Dehra Dun, December 10
The Sword of Honour, the highest laurel the Indian Military Academy awards to a cadet at the passing-out parade, was bagged by Lt. Suresh D. Singh Dadhwal from Una in Himachal Pradesh. Lieutenant Dadhwal was also the recipient of the much-sought-after President’s Gold Medal for merit during training and overall excellence.

Speaking to the Tribune as he waited impatiently for his parents with eyes glued to the main gate of the academy, Lieutenant Dadhwal said he was overwhelmed by the honour because it meant fulfilling the dreams of his parents.

Lieutenant Dadhwal comes from an army background. His father Subedar Darshan Singh, retired from the army and is now working as a physical education teacher at a primary school in HP.

Lieutenant Dadhwal has an illustrious record at the academy for excellence in football, athletics and boxing, apart from overall merit. He was also awarded the Bayonet pin at the NDA for excelling in his service subjects. He has been commissioned into the 89th Armoured Regiment.

Dash of royalty at IMA
Tribune News Service

Dehra Dun, December 10
Adding a dash of royal flavour to the passing-out Parade the IMA today, the Royal family of Malaysia was among the hundreds of parents who saw their sons become officers. The next Crown Prince of Malaysia, Ismail Ibrahim, was among the 18 cadets from friendly countries, who passed out of the academy.

A jubilant Lieutenant Ibrahim who said he had slogged it out and roughed it up to be trained as an Army officer, would serve the Indian Army for the next two years. A keen polo lover, he has been commissioned into 61st Cavalry and looks forward to his new assignment at either Jaipur or Delhi. The toughness of the training, which has made him a better officer and a better humanbeing, would remain a part of his IMA memories he would cherish forever, he said.

The Crown Prince of Malaysia, HRH TUNKU Makhota Johor Ibrahim Ismail, who was there to witness the ceremony, said he was a proud father and he thanked India and the academy for training his son. The Prince’s mother, Raja Zarith Sophia Idris, said it was an emotional moment to see her son, once a baby, to have grown up to become an officer.