Britain´s Ministry of Defence on Monday announced it is slashing the British Gurkhas by 700 personnel under its redundancy program to downsize the Brigade of Gurkhas to 2,900 by 2015.

“Redundancies will fall across the ability range in four tranches. The first tranche of up to 165 Gurkhas will be announced in September,” said a statement from the British embassy. The Brigade of Gurkhas, the collective term for Gurkha units of the current British Army, is 3,640 strong, according to Wikipedia.

The embassy said that the British army, under the redundancy program announced in London on Monday, will reduce some 7,000 posts over the next four years, bringing the strength of the army to 94,350.

The embassy said that voluntary redundancy will be offered while adding that some involuntary redundancy is also likely. But it added, “…Commanding officers hope to target those who are near the end their service and are therefore eligible for an immediate pension. Soldiers will not be selected for redundancy whilst serving on operations.”

As the Brigade of Gurkhas will still need cable young soldiers, the programme will not affect recruitment. The Brigade plans to recruit some 176 this year.

The embassy statement has commended the role played by the British Gurkhas. “The UK, Nepal, and the world continue to benefit from the outstanding contribution being made by the Brigade of Gurkhas.”

The redundancy program followed an announcement of an increase in the pension of British Gurkhas. British Minister for Defence Personnel Welfare and Veterans Andrew Robathan, during his visit to Nepal in March, had announced a hike in retirement pay for Gurkha soldiers by 9.6 percent.

Published on: 5 April 2011 | Republica