The Rajputana Rifles is the oldest rifle regiment of the Indian Army. It was originally a part of the British Indian Army, when six previously existing regiments were amalgamated to form six battalions of the 6th Rajputana Rifles. In 1945, the numeral designation was dropped from the title and in 1947 the regiment was transferred to the newly independent Indian Army. Since independence, the regiment has been involved in a number of conflicts against Pakistan, as well as contributing to the Custodian Force (India) in Korea under the aegis of the United Nations in 1953–54 and to the UN Mission to the Congo in 1962. As a rifle regiment, it uses a bugle horn as its insignia, the same as the British Light Division, but unlike its British counterparts, the Rajputana Rifles march at the same march pace used in the Indian Army as a whole. Etymology The name Rajputana Rifles is derived from northwest, and the word Rajputana , a historic region in northwest India that is roughly coextensive with the modern Indian state of Rajasthan, as well as small sections of Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat. It is based on the word Rajaputra, meaning "son of a king, which came in 6th century. The name Rajputana means "land of the Rajputs". The Aravalli Range crosses the southern part of the region from northeast to southwest. The northwestern part is largely the Thar desert, but to the southeast, the land is extremely fertile. Rajput power rose here between the 6th and 13th centuries, and the princes resisted the early Muslim incursions, which began in the 11th century. Rajput power reached its peak in the early 15th century, but the area fell to the Mughals when Akbar captured the Chittor Fort in 1568. But the Rajputana was safe due to mutual understanding with mughals.From their seat at Ajmer the Mughals ruled Rajputana until the early 18th century. The Marathas held feudatories in the region from c. 1750 to 1818, when it passed to Great Britain. When Britishers came Rajputs did treaty.The Rajput princely states came under British protection by treaties in the early 19th century; most of the area was formed into Rajasthan state in 1948. Under the British, Rajputana included more than 20 princely states, notably Bikaner, Jaipur, Jodhpur, Udaipur, and Ajmer. The internal autonomy of many of the states was guaranteed. Recruitment The Rajputana Rifles is a fixed class