The Gurkha Training Company has once again seen all recruits from an intake successfully pass the gruelling Combat Infantry Course. The full complement of 274 qualified from the testing 39-week rite of passage at the Infantry Training Centre, Catterick.
Becoming a Gurkha is not an easy process. The journey begins in Nepal, where only a few hundred individuals – from approximately 16,000 applicants – are chosen to travel to Catterick Garrison in the UK, where they face nine months of some of the toughest training in Britain’s Armed Forces.
Newly qualified Rifleman Pramesh Rana Magar reflected on his journey:
When I was selected in Nepal, I had no idea about Army life.
I have changed massively after the hard training process, but I am very proud of myself.
The course is renowned for its intensity, but the results speak for themselves. Colonel David Robinson, Colonel of the Brigade of Gurkhas, praised the recruits and their instructors.
Dave Robinson said:
I saw the recruits at the start of this process in Nepal.
We’ve taken some amazing young men from Nepal and turned them into Gurkhas.
I’m always really proud of the recruits and staff that make the training happen. The training is tough, but the recruits push through and get results they can be proud of.
The culmination of their hard work was marked by a celebratory pass out parade, where the recruits marched with pride in front of their families and senior staff from across the Brigade of Gurkhas. Many had travelled from Nepal to witness this special moment.
The parade symbolised not just the end of their training but the beginning of their careers in the British Army.
For Rifleman Rikesh Rai, the day was particularly meaningful:
I am the youngest in my family, and I’ve always wanted to make them proud.
It feels good to know I have now achieved this and made myself proud too.
The process from selection to training and now pass out has made me more mature, and I feel grateful for the opportunity.
The parade concluded with an inspiring speech from the inspecting officer, Major General Gerald Strickland DSO MBE, who reminded the recruits of the significance of their achievement. He said:
Whatever you do, do it with pride because you are now a Gurkha. Well done.
The newly qualified Gurkhas will now either move to their trade training or straight to one of the eight cap badges within the Brigade of Gurkhas, including the recently formed The King’s Gurkha Artillery.
Meanwhile, the next generation of potential recruits is preparing to begin their own journey, with the selection process for 2026 taking place in Nepal, with the final selection stage in Pokhara during January.
