Hyderabad State Forces

The Hyderabad State Forces were the armed forces of the princely state of Hyderabad. People from both India and abroad were recruited into the Forces. Among these groups were Arab nationals like Chaush and African nationals like Siddis who now stay in Barkas and A. C. Guards areas of Hyderabad respectively.^[1] The Hyderabad cavalry was chiefly composed of Muslim castes such as Mughals, Pathans, Syeds, Sheikhs and Balochs. They were principally recruited from the Deccan Plateau, but Delhi, Lucknow, Shahjahanpur, Sindh and Balochistan also supplied recruits to bolster ranks. These non-indigenous soldiers were known as the "Rohollas". The Hindus made a very small portion of the cavalry.^[2] The Nizam of Hyderabad also had about 1200 Sikh guards.^[3] Other battalions within the army were referred to with the suffix "-walas". Some troops were also supplied by the Europeans for the security of the Nizam.^[4]

Three different corps were commanded by three different independent commanders. The Nizam, the Diwan, and an important officer in the Nizam's government, Shangal Umara or "Amin Kabir", each maintained their own separate divisions.^[4]

During the time of Operation Polo, the Hyderabad State Forces consisted of six infantry battalions, two Cavalry regiments, and 1,500 armed irregulars. The army had two light armored regiments and one field battery.^[5] In total, the Nizam's army numbered 24,000 men, of whom some 6,000 were fully trained and equipped. Some of the units surrendered on the first two days of the Operation. Four Hyderabadi infantry companies and three cavalry squadrons were later absorbed into the Maratha Light Infantry, Madras Regiment, Poona Horse and Deccan Horse of the Indian Army, respectively.^[6]

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