Page 80 - Leadership in the Indian Army

had no difficulty in being selected. He spoke English fluently, had an
excellent physique, was a good sportsman, and possessed the necessary
social graces to move in British society.

The PWRIMC had been built in sylvan surroundings and, in keeping with
the British public school tradition, its cadets were housed comfortably in
dormitories. All the housemasters and teachers were British, as was the
Commandant, Colonel J.L. Stoughton from the Sikh Regiment. The cadets
came from diverse backgrounds, with many from royal or military families.
Proficiency in sports and games was more highly regarded than scholastic
achievement, and Thimayya had no problem in staying near the top of his

class. Once when General Claude Jacob, the Chief of General Staff, was
visiting, a cricket match was organised in his honour. Thimayya batted
exceptionally well and hit a sixer, which landed almost on the General’s
head. Fortunately, General Claude was an avid cricketer and he not only
congratulated Thimayya, but remembered him many years later.
Though the PWRIMC was meant to be a feeder institution, admission to

the school did not guarantee a place at Sandhurst. And though it was called
a ‘college’, it did not give even a school certificate to the boys who passed
out after spending six to seven years there. Many Indians considered it a
‘sop’, which was unlikely to accelerate the pace of Indianisation of the
army. During an Assembly debate on 19 February 1925, one member
compared it to the Holy Roman Empire, which was neither Holy, nor
Roman, nor an Empire. For some reason the British believed that only boys

with an aristocratic background or from the land-owning class were suitable
for commissions, and were very careful about selecting candidates. As a
result, most of those admitted to the school during the first few years
possessed impeccable pedigrees, but lacked education as well as mental and
physical robustness. After a year-and-a-half, there were only five cadets left
in Thimayya’s batch; the others had either failed the tests or had given up in

between.
The next hurdle was the admission test for Sandhurst. Thimayya’s
academic record was not brilliant, and he knew that he would have to work
very hard if he wanted to pass. Also, his parents had already spent a lot of
money in sending him to the PWRIMC—the fee was Rs 5,000 for sons of
military officers and Rs 10,000 for others—and it would all be wasted if he
failed to qualify. Incidentally, unlike now when pre-commission training is

free, in those days parents had to pay for the training at Sandhurst as well—