The 519 cadets who passed out today included 469 from India and 50 from abroad.
The Indian Military Academy held its 137th Regular Course passing out parade in Dehradun on Saturday.
The 519 cadets who passed out today included 469 from India and 50 from abroad. The 50 foreign cadets were from Afghanistan, Tajikistan, Maldives, Nepal and Sri Lanka.
Reviewing Officer of the parade, Army Chief Gen Dalbir Singh said he was honoured to attend the ceremony at the Academy, which stands tall as one of the premier institutes in the world by keeping alive the glorious tradition of producing excellent officers.
Congratulating the cadets for successfully completing their training at the academy known all over the world for its high standards of training, Gen Singh said it was time to utilise what they had learnt at the Academy to serve the armies of their respective countries.
Performed at IMA's drill square with the historic Chetwode building in the background on a sunny morning, the Passing out Parade was a colourful affair with well turned out young cadets crossing the Chetwode threshold to become officers of the Army.
The coveted Sword of Honour award was bagged by Lalit Thapaliyal for best all round performance while the Gold Medal went to Abshishek Kumar Singh. Uttar Pradesh accounted for the highest number of 74 cadets followed by Haryana with 67. The third highest representation was from Bihar, Uttarakhand and Rajasthan with 29 cadets from each of these states passing out.
The three-hour programme included parade inspection, sword of honour, piping and an oath ceremony.