The MARATHA LIGHT INFANTRY, one of the oldest Regiments of the Indian Army, is highly acclaimed for swift maneuver with indomitable courage and bravery. Since its foundation laid by one of the greatest leaders of the world, Chhatrapati Shivaji in the seventeenth century, the Maratha Soldiers, have time and again proved their skills in guerilla tactics by defeating numerically superior enemy forces. The numerous Battle honors, Theatre honors and gallantry awards earned by the Regiment and its soldiers, stand testimony to its glorious history of last 250 years. 

Under the British regime, the first two battalions of the Regiment were raised in 1768 to protect the assets of East India Company on the island of Bombay. 3^rd Battalion was raised in quick succession. All the three battalions proved their worth in all the major engagements fought from Surat to Cannanore, which were praised by Lord Wellesley in the words- ‘Their conduct and success were seldom equalled and never surpassed”.

In the nineteenth century, the Regiment witnessed further expansion with raising of four new battalions, and was renamed the Bombay Native Infantry. In the second half of the century, the Regiment was engaged in numerous Campaigns from Middle East to China. Owing to its gallant conduct in Afghan War in1841 and Abyssinian campaigns of 1867-68, the Regiment was bestowed the prestigious title of ‘LIGHT INFANTRY’ by the British, this being the only Regiment to earn the unique distinction during British India.

The true fighting qualities of the Marathas were discovered during the First World War (1914-18) when, in the long drawn out Mesopotamian campaign, three Mahratta battalions the 103^rd, 114^th and 117^th attained glory with their valour. In the ferocious battles that took place, the battalions at times lost 50 percent of their strength in casualties but never lost an inch of ground nor left their objectives uncaptured.

The gallantry and heroism of the 117^th Mahrattas (present 5 Maratha LI) was of an exceptionally high order. It was made into a Royal battalion for its conspicuously distinctive service during its campaign in Mesopotamia and particularly in the events leading to the capitulation after the bitter 146 days siege at Kut-el-Amara. No less distinguished was the conduct of the 114^th Mahrattas (present Regimental Centre) in the battle of “Sharquat” where it was awarded 28 gallantry awards excluding eight Mentioned-in-Despatches, the highest earned by any unit in a single action till date. The other Maratha battalions the 105^th, 110^th and 116^th  also achieved glorious victories in Palestine and Mesopotamia. After their return to India, these six battalions of the Bombay Army were merged to form a single group and designated as the 5 Mahratta Light Infantry in 1922. The re-designation also saw 114 Mahratta become the training battalion for the group and subsequently the Regimental Centre.

The Second World War saw the Maratha in the forefront in almost every theatre of operations from the jungles of South East Asia, to the deserts of North Africa, and the mountains and rivers of Italy. The war also saw the expansion of the Regiment when thirteen new war-service battalions were raised. During the war the courage and determination of the Maratha soldiers reached its pinnacle when Nk Yeshwant Ghadge and Sep Namdeo Jadhav were decorated with the Victoria Cross in the Italian campaign. The 130 other decorations awarded to it was a tribute to the fighting qualities of its men.

The Battalions of the Regiment have performed par-excellence in all major conflicts faced by the nation. Since Independence it has earned Seven Battle Honor’s and Seven Theatre Honor’s, and numerous gallantry awards including Five Ashok Chakra and Five Mahavir Chakra. The honors and awards bear testimony to the frontline leadership and courage of the valiant Maratha Soldiers and Units. The conduct and performance of its troops as part of UN peace keeping missions in Korea, Laos, South Sudan and the Gaza strip have drawn worldwide acclaim.

Post-Independence

Independence saw the Regiment reverting to the original five battalions, but with 3 Maratha Light Infantry now a parachute battalion. With the integration of the erstwhile princely states, the 19, 20, 22 battalions were amalgamated, from the state forces of Kolhapur, Baroda, and Hyderabad respectively with the Regiment.

Since Independence, battalions of the MARATHA LIGHT INFANTRY have taken part in every major armed conflict - J&K operations in 1947-48, entry into Junagarh, Liberation of Hyderabad, Goa, Daman and Diu, the Chinese aggression in 1962, conflicts with Pakistan in 1965 and 1971, against the Chinese on the Sikkim watershed in 1956, the operations in Sri Lanka, the ongoing operations in Siachen glacier and in counter-insurgency operations. The conduct and performance of its troops as part of UN peace keeping missions in Korea, Ethiopia Eritrea, Congo Laos, South Sudan and the Gaza strip have drawn worldwide acclaim. The Regiment has conducted itself creditably whenever called upon for peacetime duties and combating insurgency and terrorism and reposed the confidence and faith in the populace. The Ashok Chakra awarded to Capt Eric Tucker, Col NJ Nair, KC, Col V Vasant, Capt Harshan R and Lt Navdeep Singh ; the five Mahavir Chakras and the numerous other war and peace time gallantry awards bear testimony to the frontline leadership and courage of the Regiment’s officers and men.

The Conceptualisation of Maratha Day  

On 04 Feb 2015 Lt Gen PJS Pannu, PVSM, AVSM, VSM proposed 04 Feb each year to be observed as The Maratha Day, epitomizing the valour and chivalry displayed during the capture of “SINHGARH FORT” in 1670 by a small party of the Marathas, who scaled an impossiblecliff to catch a well-fortified and numerically superior enemy off guard. There was a unanimous support for this idea. It was therefore decided that ’04 Feb’ each year shall be observed ‘The Maratha Day’.