India has many special operations force units. The most well-known include the Paras of the Indian Army, the Marcos of the Indian Navy, and the Garuds of the Indian Air Force. But there are other lesser known ‘special operations’ units as well. These include the Black Cats, COBRA, Ghataks, Special Frontier Force, and Force One.
The Paras were formed up during the 1965 Indo-Pak War. The Paras would later fight in the 1971 Indo-Pak War and take part in subsequent conflicts and operations in the 1980s and 1990s. The Maras are the maritime commandos of India. The Garuds were formed in 2004 and have the primary task of protecting Indian Air Force installations from terror attacks. Read more in “No ordinary soldiers: India’s 8 Special Forces which compare with the best in the world“, The News Minute, August 13, 2016.
Photo credit: Maps from CIA, photo of parachutists from Pacific Air Forces Public Affairs Office, Airman 1st Class Stephen G. Eigel, Feb 20, 2015. Members with Indian Army’s 2nd Parachute Regiment (Special Forces) and National Security Guard jump from a Pacific Air Forces C-17 Globemaster III for a parachuting demonstration at Air Force Station Yelahanka, Bengaluru, India on February 20, 2015.
