treatment of Indian officers in the Army. He stressed the discrimination shown toward Indian officers in terms of appointments, promotions, benefits and allowances to which European officers were entitled but Indian officers were not. After World War II began, Cariappa was posted as brigade major to the 20th Indian Brigade stationed in Derajat. Later he was appointed as the DAQMG of 10th Indian Division which was stationed in Iraq. He earned a Mention in Despatches as DAA and quartermaster general of General (later Field Marshal) William Slim's 10th Division. He served in Iraq, Iran and Syria in 1941–1942 and then in Burma in 1943–1944. Back in India in March 1942, he was posted as second-in-command of the newly raised 7th Rajput Machine Gun Battalion at Fatehgarh. On 15 April 1942, he was promoted to acting lieutenant colonel and was appointed commanding officer of the same battalion, receiving an advancement to temporary lieutenant-colonel on 15 July. With this appointment he became the first Indian to command a battalion in the Indian Army. Cariappa was successful in stabilising the newly raised battalion in terms of administration, training, and the handling of arms. Later the unit was rechristened as the 52nd Rajput and put under 43rd Indian Armoured Division. Within a span of a few months, the unit observed two transformations and two moves. First, the battalion's machine guns were replaced with tanks in order to convert it into an armoured regiment. But soon the battalion was reverted to infantry and re-designated as 17/7 Rajputs. Subsequently, it was moved to Secunderabad. This move led to unrest among the unit's troops which was successfully handled by Cariappa. On 1 April 1943, he was appointed as the assistant quarter master general (AQMG) in the headquarters of Eastern Command. Though Cariappa wished to serve in combat, chance did not favour him. In August 1943, when the South East Asia Command was formed, and the Fourteenth Army was placed under it, Cariappa volunteered for active service in the war. But he was again posted as AQMG of the 26th Indian Division stationed at Buthidaung in Burma. The division played an important role in pushing the Japanese back from Arakan. For his services in the operation, Cariappa was awarded the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in June 1945. On 1 November 1944, Cariappa was promoted to the acting rank of brigadier, but was not given the command