At the end of the World War II, Field Marshal Claude Auchinleck, then Commander-in-Chief of the Indian Army, drawing on experiences of the army during the war, led a committee around the world and submitted a report to the Government of India in December 1946. The committee recommended the establishment of a Joint Services Military Academy, with training modelled on the United States Military Academy at West Point.[7]
After the independence of India in August 1947, the Chiefs of Staff Committee immediately implemented the recommendations of the Auchinleck report. The committee initiated an action plan in late 1947 to commission a permanent defence academy and began the search for a suitable site. It also decided to set up an interim training academy, known as the Joint Services Wing (JSW), which was commissioned on 1 January 1949 at the Armed Forces Academy (now known as the Indian Military Academy) in Dehradun.[8][7] Initially, after two years of training at the JSW, Army cadets went on to the Military wing of the Armed Forces Academy for two years of further pre-commission training, while the Navy and Air Force cadets were sent to Britannia Royal Naval College Dartmouth and Royal Air Force College Cranwell in the United Kingdom for further training.[7]
In 1941, Lord Linlithgow, the then Viceroy of India, received a gift of £100,000 from a grateful Sudanese Government towards building a war memorial in recognition of the sacrifices of Indian troops in the liberation of Sudan in the East African campaign during World War II. Following partition, India's share amounted to £70,000 (Rs 14 Lakh at the time; the remaining £30,000 went to Pakistan).[9] The Indian Army decided to use these funds to partly cover the cost of construction of the NDA.[9] The foundation stone for the academy was laid by then Prime Minister of India, Jawaharlal Nehru on 6 October 1949.[9] Construction started in October 1949. The revised estimated cost for the whole project was Rs 6.45 crores respectively.[10][11] The National Defence Academy was formally commissioned on 7 December 1954, with an inauguration ceremony held on 16 January 1955.[12][13][better source needed] The 10th JSW program was transferred from Clement Town, Dehradun to NDA Khadakwasla.It is the first tri-service academy in the world.
Campus[edit]
The NDA campus is located about 17 km south-west of Pune city, north-west of Khadakwasla Lake with the Sinhagad Fort providing a panoramic backdrop.[7] It spans 7,015 acres (28.39 km2) of the 8,022 acres (32.46 km2)[14] donated by the Government of former Bombay State. While many states had offered land for a permanent place for the Academy, Bombay got the honour, donating the most land including a lake and neighboring hilly terrain.[15] The site was also chosen for its proximity to the Arabian Sea and other military establishments, an operational air base nearby at Lohagaon as well as the salubrious climate. The existence of an old combined-forces training center and a disused mock landing ship, HMS Angostura, on the north bank of the Khadakwasla lake which had been used to train troops for amphibious landings, lent additional leverage for the selection of the site.[7]
The administrative headquarters of the NDA was named the Sudan Block, in honour of the sacrifices of Indian soldiers in the Sudan theatre during the East African campaign. It was inaugurated by then Ambassador of Sudan to India, Rahmatullah Abdulla, on 30 May 1959.[9] The building is a 3-storey basalt and granite structure constructed with Jodhpur red sandstone. Its architecture features an exterior design comprising a blend of arches, pillars and verandahs, topped by a dome. The foyer has white Italian marble flooring and panelling on the interior walls.[9] NDA has an excellent infrastructure for all-round training of cadets and a vast array of facilities like spacious and well-maintained classrooms, well-equipped labs, three Olympic size swimming pools, gymnasiums, 32 football fields, two polo grounds, a cricket stadium and a number of squash and tennis courts.[16] The academic year is divided into two terms, viz. Spring (January to May) and Autumn (July to December). A cadet must undergo training for a total of six terms before graduating from the NDA.
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