Today in world ranking of elite forces in top ten
Indian Marcos got the rank of Seven.
"MARCOS" is short for "Marine Commandos".
Marine Commando Force (MCF)) that is Marcos is an elite special operations unit of the Indian Navy
Today in world ranking of elite forces in top ten
Indian Marcos got the rank of Seven.
Terrorist called them as the 'Dadiwali Fauj' (Bearded Army) since they are the only non-Sikh personnel allowed to grow beards, 'Jal Murgi' (Water Hens) for the speed, in which they carry out assault from the water and 'Magarmachh' (Crocodiles) for their amphibious capability.
Year 1986 –
Indian Navy decided to start create a special force equivalent to American Navy Seal.
The Indian special force which will conduct raids and counter terrorist operations on sea or on land as per the requirement of operation.
After that Indian Navy selected best officers from navy and they went to America to get the joint training from American Navy Seal then they visited got joint training from British Special Forces also.
When these fully trained officers came back to India then
In year 1987 – Indian Navy created started a special force unit called as Indian Marine Special Force later in year 1991 Indian navy change the name and renamed it as The Marine Commando Force (MCF).
but they are more familiarly known as MARCOS (Marine Commandos).
Training Period –
To become a qualified Marcos, one has to complete 2 years of training.
For one month or 3 to 4 weeks in a first phase they get physical training and tests and only 40 to 50% candidates pass this phase.
After this they get training in weapons and intelligence for nearly 1 year.
After that again they get one year of training.
2 years of training makes them perfect to fight on land or sea or air.
All MARCOS personnel are static line parachute qualified
They are capable of para-dropping into the sea with full combat load and equipment.
They attend the four week high-altitude commando course run by the Parvat Ghatak School in Tawang, Arunachal Pradesh.
Transport and Weapons used by Marcos -
1.Browning Hi-Power 9mm Semi-automatic pistol
2.Glock 17 9mm Semi-automatic pistol
3.SIG P226 9mm Semi-automatic pistol
4.1A SMG 9mm Sub-machine gun
5.Uzi 9mm Sub-machine gun
6.HK MP5 9mm Sub-machine gun
7.AKM Assault rifle and it's variants
8.AK-103 Assault Rifle
9.AKS-74U Compact assault rifle
10.INSAS 5.56 mm NATO Assault Rifle
11.Colt M16A2 5.56mm NATO Assault rifle
12.Colt M4A1 5.56 mm NATO Carbine
13.TAR-21 Tavor 5.56 mm NATO Assault rifle
14.1A SLR 7.62mm NATO Battle Rifle
15.APS Underwater assault rifle
16.Dragunov SVD Semi-automatic sniper rifle
17.Heckler & Koch MSG90 Semi-automatic sniper rifle
18.OSV-96 Anti-material rifle
19.Cross Bow With Cyanide Tipped Arrow
20.IMI Negev Light machine gun
21.PK General purpose machine gun
22.FN MAG 7.62 mm General purpose machine gun
23.GP-25 40mm Grenade Launcher
24.M203 40mm Grenade launcher
25.AGS-17 Automatic grenade launchers
26.RCL Mk III 84mm Recoilless rifle
27.Shipon Anti-tank weapon
28.9K38 Igla MANPADS
29.IMI Negev Light machine gun
30.PK General purpose machine gun
31.FN MAG 7.62 mm General purpose machine gun
32.GP-25 40mm Grenade Launcher
33.M203 40mm Grenade launcher
34.AGS-17 Automatic grenade launchers
35.RCL Mk III 84mm Recoilless rifle
36.Shipon Anti-tank weapon
37.9K38 Igla MANPADS
Marcos normally use H-3 Sea King and Chetak helicopters, Cosmos CE-2F/X100 two-man submarines for operations.
Currently India got more than 2000 Marcos commandos but the information is classified not declared.
2000 Marcos - in 10 groups of 200 personnel each.
Currently there are three main groups detached to the three naval commands;
Mumbai (West), Cochin (South) and Vizag (East).
In Mumbai they get training on INS Abhimanyu.
Operations and Marcos –
Information regarding Marcos operations is kept classified but few times it’s declared.
1988 – Operation Pawan - Pawan means wind
On 21 October 1988, Marcos conducted a successful raid against a coastal LTTE base. The Marcos also helped capture the Jaffna and Trincomalee harbors from the LTTE.
November 1988, Operation Cactus –
A group of 47 mercenaries attempted to escape by sea with 23 hostages, on a hijacked vessel, MV Progress Light later they were spotted and Marcos team fast-roped on the ship from helicopters and took control.
Operation Leech –
which resulting in the slaying of a number of Burmese rebels at Narcondum Island in the North Andaman group of Islands.
Operation Tasha –
a coastal security operation on the Tamil Nadu coast to thwart operations of the LTTE there, than something belonging to the realm of special operations
Operation Swan –
after the December 92 blasts in Mumbai, wherein the MARCOS were used for patrolling.
Kargil War. Covert operations behind enemy lines. Classified.
in the Gulf of Aden, MARCOS thwarted an attempt by pirates to capture the Indian merchant vessel MV Jag Arnav on November 11, 2008
On 13 December 2008 MARCOS units operating from the Indian Naval warship INS Mysore foiled a pirate hijack attempt of Ethiopian vessel MV Gibe off the Somali coast.
Marcos have been active in Jammu and Kashmir as part of the Army's counter-terrorist efforts. Their main task is to control the infiltration of terrorists from across the border into Jammu and Kashmir through the Jhelum river and Wullar, a 65 square kilometer freshwater lake.
During the Mumbai terror attacks on November 26, 2008, lack of information about the layout of the Taj Mahal hotel in Mumbai, one of the key targets of the attacks, had put security forces in a bind.
Having burnt their fingers once, the marcos are now sweating it out during peacetime to be well-versed of the site plans of offshore installations on the eastern coast of the country.
Two Marcos received injuries during "Operation Tornado" launched to flush out terrorists at the Taj Mahal Palace and Tower Hotel.
