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Royal Bhutan Army
The Royal Bhutan Army (RBA; Dzongkha: བསྟན་སྲུང་དམག་སྡེ་, romanized: bStan-srung dmag-sde) is a branch of the armed forces of the Kingdom of Bhutan responsible for maintaining the country's territorial integrity and sovereignty against security threats. The King of Bhutan is the Supreme Commander in Chief of the RBA. The Chief Operations Officer is Goonglon Gongma (Lt. Gen.) Batoo Tshering.
The RBA includes the Royal Bodyguard of Bhutan (RBG), an elite branch of the armed forces responsible for the security of the King, the royal family and other officials.
It was customary, but not obligatory, for one son from each Bhutanese family to serve in the army. In addition, militia may be recruited during emergencies. It may, from time to time, be called on to assist the Royal Bhutan Police (RBP) in maintaining law and order.
With intense support from India, the RBA was formed in the 1950s in response to the Chinese annexation and subsequent People's Liberation Army actions in Tibet. In 1958, the Royal Government of Bhutan introduced a conscription system and plans for a standing army of 2,500 soldiers. The Indian government had also repeatedly urged and pressured Bhutan to end its neutrality or isolationist policy and accept Indian economic and military assistance. This was because India considered Bhutan one of the most vulnerable sectors in its strategic defense system in regards to China. When Bhutan accepted the Indian offer, the Indian Army became responsible for the training and equipping of the RBA. By 1968 the RBA consisted of 4,850 soldiers; by 1990 this had risen to 6,000. Following the increases after an anti-militant operation in 2003, the RBA peaked at over 9,000 in 2007 before being reduced to 8,000 in 2008. By 2017 the military rose to approximately 10,000 or above.
Bhutanese officers were deployed to UNDOF as staff officers in 2015.
In 2021, the first cohort of women were admitted to the Army.
The Indian Army maintains a training mission in Bhutan, known as the Indian Military Training Team (IMTRAT), which is responsible for the training of RBA and RBG personnel. All RBA and RBG officers are trained at the Indian Army's officer training institutes, namely the National Defence Academy (NDA) in Pune, and the Indian Military Academy (IMA) in Dehradun.
Project DANTAK of the Border Roads Organisation, a subdivision of the Indian Army Corps of Engineers, has been operating in Bhutan since May 1961. Since then Project DANTAK has been responsible for the construction and maintenance of over 1,500 km of roads and bridges, Paro Airport and Yongphulla Airport (upgraded in 2018, with scheduled fixed-wing civilian flights), heliports and other infrastructure. While these serve India's strategic defense needs, they are also an obvious economic benefit for the people of Bhutan.
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Royal Bhutan Army
The Royal Bhutan Army (RBA; Dzongkha: བསྟན་སྲུང་དམག་སྡེ་, romanized: bStan-srung dmag-sde) is a branch of the armed forces of the Kingdom of Bhutan responsible for maintaining the country's territorial integrity and sovereignty against security threats. The King of Bhutan is the Supreme Commander in Chief of the RBA. The Chief Operations Officer is Goonglon Gongma (Lt. Gen.) Batoo Tshering.
The RBA includes the Royal Bodyguard of Bhutan (RBG), an elite branch of the armed forces responsible for the security of the King, the royal family and other officials.
It was customary, but not obligatory, for one son from each Bhutanese family to serve in the army. In addition, militia may be recruited during emergencies. It may, from time to time, be called on to assist the Royal Bhutan Police (RBP) in maintaining law and order.
With intense support from India, the RBA was formed in the 1950s in response to the Chinese annexation and subsequent People's Liberation Army actions in Tibet. In 1958, the Royal Government of Bhutan introduced a conscription system and plans for a standing army of 2,500 soldiers. The Indian government had also repeatedly urged and pressured Bhutan to end its neutrality or isolationist policy and accept Indian economic and military assistance. This was because India considered Bhutan one of the most vulnerable sectors in its strategic defense system in regards to China. When Bhutan accepted the Indian offer, the Indian Army became responsible for the training and equipping of the RBA. By 1968 the RBA consisted of 4,850 soldiers; by 1990 this had risen to 6,000. Following the increases after an anti-militant operation in 2003, the RBA peaked at over 9,000 in 2007 before being reduced to 8,000 in 2008. By 2017 the military rose to approximately 10,000 or above.
Bhutanese officers were deployed to UNDOF as staff officers in 2015.
In 2021, the first cohort of women were admitted to the Army.
The Indian Army maintains a training mission in Bhutan, known as the Indian Military Training Team (IMTRAT), which is responsible for the training of RBA and RBG personnel. All RBA and RBG officers are trained at the Indian Army's officer training institutes, namely the National Defence Academy (NDA) in Pune, and the Indian Military Academy (IMA) in Dehradun.
Project DANTAK of the Border Roads Organisation, a subdivision of the Indian Army Corps of Engineers, has been operating in Bhutan since May 1961. Since then Project DANTAK has been responsible for the construction and maintenance of over 1,500 km of roads and bridges, Paro Airport and Yongphulla Airport (upgraded in 2018, with scheduled fixed-wing civilian flights), heliports and other infrastructure. While these serve India's strategic defense needs, they are also an obvious economic benefit for the people of Bhutan.