8 Badges PARA Commandos Earn By Playing With Death

Hello Warriors. Para Commandos are a Special Forces unit of the Indian Army mandated with missions such as special operations. Being a Para Commando is the best thing that can happen to an Army soldier. They are not just soldiers, they are the ‘soldier’s soldier’!

The Para Commando earns various badges as honours for distinct service and task he does by playing with death, literally! For them, earning a badge is all about ‘do or die’ but beating all odds, the elite soldiers have modified it to ‘do it before you die’.

Here are the 8 badges para commandos earn by playing with death:

Balidaan Badge: This badge is worn by the Para Special Forces. The badge on the maroon beret speaks volume about who you are and what you are capable of! The Balidaan Badge is earned by just 4-5 volunteers out of selected 100. You really have to be the best to earn it. The Balidaan Badge is only for SF badged members. This includes doctors posted in the unit and has completed probation and service requirements. It is also awarded for first confirmed kill.
Wings: Not essentially a badge, but the wings speak that you are a part of the airborne battalion. They are air dropped behind the enemy lines to cut their supplies, reinforcement and be on standby until the Infantry or Artillery proceeds further. It is a high risk task as they are in the enemy territory at any given time and pose fatal risk of getting detected and attacked.
Sleeve Badges: The Special Forces of Parachute Regiment get to wear the arm title which reads, ‘Special Forces’. Lance Naik Mohan Nath Goswami, AC, was one from the 9 Para (SF) Commandos who wore the same making the supreme sacrifice of his life for the country.
Combat Free Falling: The free-fall course requires at least 50 jumps from altitudes up to 33,500 feet to pass. Both HALO (High Altitude Low Opening) and HAHO (High Altitude High Opening) techniques are learned. Apart from regular parachute badge, freefall jumpers wear a gold badge below the medal ribbons centred on left pocket. It is after this that they earn the coveted Combat Free Falling Badge.
Diving: Some of the trainees are also taught specialised mode of infiltration and exfiltration, either by air (combat freefall) or sea (combat diving).Those opting for the combat diving earns the Diving badge. The badge speaks that you are ready to take any mission either on land or sea. Diving badges are common in SF as they have a diving component in every squadron/company.
Number of Jumps Badge: This badge is earned by the Para Commando who completes 20, 50 or subsequent number of jumps during combat freefall. This marks the number of jumps the commando has achieved since his training.
Chakrata Badge: This rare badge is that worn over the ribbons which appears like a winged square with a dagger enclosed in lightning. This signifies service with Special Frontier Force based in Chakrata after the 1962 Sino-Indian war.
Tiger Hill Badge: This badge is awarded to the Para Commandos who has helped the capturing of tiger hill during the 1999 Kargil war.

Apart from this, there are various other badges earned for distinguished service by the Commandos of the Parachute Regiment. Do you know some? Share with us.