Gurkhas Part of the Singapore Police Force (SPF), the Gurkha Contingent, headquartered at Mount Vernon Camp, is made up of soldiers from Gorkha (western Nepal). The Gurkha Contingent was established in April 1949, after the demise of the Sikh Contingent following World War II. The contingent guards key installations such as the Istana and prisons, and functions as a riot squad.

There are currently six Gurkha Guard companies led by Nepalese chief inspectors. There is a Gurkha Band Contingent for parades. Since its inception, the contingent’s senior officers have been British army personnel on contract or loan service.

The Gurkhas are descendants of the North Indian Rajput tribes who seized Gorkha in the early 16th century, and are considered by many to be formidable and fiercely loyal warriors. They are recruited from predominantly Hindu and Buddhist rice- and wheat- growing villages, the youngest recruits being 18 years of age. They undergo rigorous training and are schooled in martial arts. They generally work in Singapore for 15– 20 years before returning to Nepal.

The Gurkhas played a role in quelling the Maria Hertogh riots in 1950, which sparked off tensions between the Malay and European communities. In 1955 and 1956, they were called in to suppress the Hock Lee bus riots and Chinese middle school riots respectively.

Gurkha officers made up a portion of the SPF contingent that was sent to Iraq in 2003 to train local police officers in that country. On 18 March 2004, when a trio of armed robbers fled Johor and arrived at Pulau Tekong on a motorized sampan, a search party of 700 SPF and SAF personnel was mobilized. It was the Gurkhas who found and apprehended two of the three fugitives. The Gurkhas’ tracking skills have also been put to use during raids on illegal immigrant hideouts in forested enclaves and mangrove areas.