RASTRIYA INDIAN MILITARY COLLEGE
DEHRADUN

  1. Nestled in the verdant splendour of a vast campus of 138 acres is RIMC, Dehra Dun the "Cradle for Excellence"- RIMC is 75 years old. Exquisitely conceived and brilliantly programmed, the College strives to make a man of every boy fortunate enough to enter its portals. RIMC, basically, is Public School like none else in this subcontinent. The entire curriculum is geared to mould every cadet into future leaders. The 5 years plan of RIMC, in fact projects and lends itself to next 30-40 years after the cadets graduated from it. Verily the Prince of Wales in his inaugural address had said "it is the first few blows on the anvil of life that gives the human weapon the set and temper which carries it through life's battles". The curriculum requirements are exacting yet exciting in their variety. Every activity is objective- based and precisely timed to mould future leaders.
  2. The RIMC was inaugurated on 13 March 1922 with the objective of providing the necessary preliminary training for boys of Indian birth and domicile wishing to become officers in the Armed Forces of India. It was then named the Prince of Wales Royal Indian Military College and the boys on completing the course of instruction for five years at the RIMC used to enter pre-commission training establishments in the UK, viz the Royal Military College, Sandhurst, Royal Military Academy, Woolwich and the Royal Air Force College, Cramwell. With the establishment of IMA at Dehra Dun in 1932 this College discontinued sending its cadets to UK for the King's Commission and cadets from RIMC joined the IMA from that year for the Indian Commission. The institution now serves as a feeder institution to National Defence Academy, Khadakvasla where cadets of Army, Navy and Air Force receive their initial training.
  3. The College is spread over an area of 138 acres of picturesque land in Dehra Dun Cantonment. Each cadet knows how to play all games and is proficient in at least one team and one individual game. The game fields nurture high standards of sportsmanship, teamwork, tenacity, co-operation- all essential traits for future leaders. There are seven football and hockey grounds, three cricket fields, three squash courts, three tennis courts and practice wall, a swimming pool, three basket ball courts and a gymnasium for the use of the cadets which number a mere 220 at any one time at the school. Residential quarters for the staff and the hospital are also located within the campus. There are self contained dormitories with modern fittings, cold and hot baths. Dormitories are spacious, the best among all schools and accommodates 15 to 20 cadets each.
  4. The College is administered by the Union Ministry of Defence through Directorate General of Military Training, Army Headquarters, DHQ, PO New Delhi. It is a Category A Establishment of Ministry of Defence and come in the same bracket as NDA, IMA, OTA Naval Academy, unlike the Sainik Schools and Military Schools. Interestingly, RIMC is the oldest Public School in the country. The character of the school makes it the only kind in the entire country.
  5. The object of Govt of India in maintaining the College is to train suitable candidates for admission to NDA in such a way that they appear in the entrance examination conducted by the UPSC for entry into the NDA and be fit in all respects for the honour of receiving a commission in the Armed Forces. The College provides education on the lines of Residential Public Schools principally for boys who desire subsequently to enter the NDA. However, the course of study is such that should a boy fail to gain admission in the NDA, he will be in a position to join a College, professional Institution or University on graduation from the RIMC. There are five annual academic levels at the College split into 10 six monthly levels, from Class VIII to Class XII which makes RIMC perhaps the only institution in the country where CBSE exams are held twice a year. The medium of instruction is English. RIMC also has Physics, Chemistry, and Biology labs with the latest equipment's and experienced staff. RIMC has produced the best results possible over the past in NDA examinations by sending 75% of its total cadets every six months which is, by any standards, a marvellous achievement.
  6. All co-curricular activities at the College complement the core curriculum. The College provides ample scope for the enrichment of the social and cultural life of the cadets. To provide free play to their natural interests and make education interesting and effective, various activities are organised at different levels at the College. In order to give the cadets an opportunity for self expression and recreation, as many as twelve clubs and societies are run by the cadets themselves under the guidance of the staff. They are :-
  1. Journalism
  2. Rifle Shooting
  3. Music
  4. Art
  5. Current Affairs
  6. Photography
  7. Aeromodelling
  8. Alchemists
  9. Young Newtons
  10. Craft
  11. Horse Riding
  12. Golf
  1. Sports constitute a major part in the development of Young boys and RIMC provides immense facilities and opportunities to boys to make full use of this facet of training. Virtually all sports and games are played at the RIMC which, among others, include Boxing, Football, Hockey and Squash. In Football RIMC is a regular participant in the Limca Football for Schools and reached upto the quarter-final stage. However it is Squash where RIMC is a formidable force to reckon with at the National level. RIMC is currently the under-19 national champion and the runner-up in the under 14 category. Cadet Ritwik Bhattacharya of RIMC has taken part in the World Cup Junior Squash held at Cairo in June 1996 where he represented India. RIMC now has 2 of its cadets in the first time in national seedings for the under-19 category.
  2. In the field of adventure activities, RIMC boys have been performing exceedingly well. Mountaineering, White Water Rafting, Para Sailing and Mountain Cycling are regular features. The most remarkable achievement in field has been the success of RIMC cadets in Moutaineering Expeditions. First in 1994, four RIMC cadets and three Old Boys climbed the 6830 mtr Kedar Dome Peak which has been acknowledged by the Guinness Book of World Records as an outstanding feat by boys of 14-17 age group. In May/ Jun 1996 RIMC cadets achieved another landmark when they successfully climbed two peaks (Mt Thelu and Mt Koteshwar, both above 6000 mtr) within a period of five days. This is believed to be the first and only expedition of its kind by school boys.
  3. The academic faculty has 20 fully qualified civilian teachers known as Masters. Presently, however, due to shortage of permanent staff a number of Old Boys are also on the instructional staff. The student to teacher ratio is an incredible 12 : 1 thus making education very personal. They are all recruited on the recommendation of the UPSC and enjoy the status and privileges of Gazetted Central Government Officers. Masters in the RIMC enjoy a special status and are on duty 24 hours a day. They are involved not only in teaching but also in all the other activities related to the cadets, thus truly discharging the functions of a philosopher, friend and guide. A unique new system has been initiated recently, through which Old Boys of the College from Arms have been brought in as instructors. Two junior commissioned officers and two non commissioned officers from the Army Physical Training Corps are posted at the College to impart training in physical education, drill, games and sports to the cadets.
  4. The Commandant of the College - an Old Boy of the College is a commissioned serving officer of the rank of a Colonel and is generally from the All Arms. The Commandant is responsible for the smooth functioning of the College both academic as well as administrative. He is assisted by an Administrative Officer who, also, is an Old Boy of the College, of the Rank of Lt Col from the Army and the Vice Principal, who is the seniormost among civilian masters.
  5. A unique feature of RIMC is that all the cadets eat all their meals together in the same mess. Food in the RIMC is of excellent quality and the scales of ration are very high. Non-Vegetarian cadets get meat and 2 eggs every day. The College Library has approx 15000 books on a variety of subjects and large number of rare books.
  6. It is the pride of RIMC that it has imparted the early training to hundreds of officers who have for years led and guided fighting men to victory in many fields. The alumni who have done the Alma Mater proud are quite a number. Rimcollians, as RIMC alumni are called have won the highest gallantry awards of pre and post independent India- Lt Gen P S Bhagat, VC and Maj Somnath Sharma, PVC.
  7. Short of Bharat Ratna, Rimcollians have won every possible award for gallantry and distinguished service. Gen K S Thimayya, a distinguished alumnus, was honoured with Padma Vibhushan. RIMC has produced three Arjuna Award winners - Brig D K Khullar (Mountaineering), Col K S Rao (Sailing), and Brig R K Manchanda (Squash). It is important to mention here that one of the members of Trishna round-the-world sailing expedition was a Rimcollian with only one leg- A K Singh. A record no other institution can match. RIMC's crowning glory is that it has given four Chiefs of Staff, three to the Indian Army- Gen K S Thimayya, Gen G G Bewoor, Gen V N Sharma who till recently was Chief of the Army Staff, and fourth, was the Chief of the Air Staff- Air Chief Marshal N C Suri, PVSM, AVSM, VM- a unique and proud record indeed. Rimcollians have done equally well in civvy street where they have been senior civil servants, ambassadors, executives and governors. Rajen Jaitley, a relatively young alumnus, has been the Managing Director of Air India. Presently too, RIMC cadets have won a number of awards which includes 5 COAS Commndation Cards and 17 Army Commander's Commendation Cards. The achievements of Rimcollians across the border have been equally impressive. Some of the more illustrious Rimcollians in Pakistan include former Air Chiefs Air Marshal Nur Khan and Air Marshal Asghar Khan. Lt Gen Gul Hassan Khan, the former Foreign Minister Shahebzada Yakub Khan and the former Foreign Minister Sharayar Mohd Khan.
  8. RIMC is rich in tradition yet not a slave to it. The transformation from the three Ostrich Plumes to the Peacock feathers and from "ICH DIEN" to "BAL, VIVEK" shows a tradition changing from the Royal to the Rashtriya. Right through RIMC has fostered and maintained the fine old Indian spirit of mutual reference which binds together the Guru and the Shishya.
  9. 75 years of relentless pursuit of excellence and more than modest achievements in all fields- that is the story so far of RIMC.
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