Whenever we talk about the Indian Army, the first picture that comes to our mind is that of a young man with a weapon who is ready to give up everything in defence of the country, but you will be surprised to know that the Indian Army is bigger and more than what we think. The Indian army can usually be divided into two parts, first is Arms and second is Services, Arms is the part of the Indian Army that we all know whose work is mainly to fight wars, or to protect the border of the country in peacetime, the backend support to the Arms is provided by the Services, which includes army ordinance corps, army medical corps, army education corps, army dental corps, etc.
In this article we will be covering the Army Medical Corps, so let’s begin :
History of the Corps: Army medical corps had humble beginnings and it started as Bengal Medical Services on 1 January 1764, since then the journey to become its army medical corps has been long and challenging and finally the Indian Army medical corps was established on 3 April. It was formed in 1943, and was made by a collaboration of ‘Indian Medical Services’, ‘Indian Medical Department’ and ‘Indian Hospital and Nursing Departments’. At this time, the whole world was going through a period of World War and the motive behind the establishment of this corps was to increase the fighting power of the erstwhile army, after independence the Indian Army Medical Corps was renamed as “Army Medical corps”. This year, the Corps completed its 257th anniversary.
Principle of Corps: The principle sentence of the Army medical corps is, “सर्वे सन्तु निरामया:” which is derived from the ‘Vrihadaranyaka Upanishad’, and which means all humans should be free from diseases. Reading the principle statement you must have understood that the most important responsibility of this corps is to keep the Indian Army, and the people associated with them disease-free and save the lives of people in times of calamity.
The headquarters: The headquarters of the Army medical corps is located in Lucknow, the capital of Uttar Pradesh, which was formed by merging the Army Medical corps south and the Army Medical corps north.
Corps training institutes:
Armed forces medical services medical, dental, nursing and para-medical personnel are trained in the institutes operated by the corps itself. So let’s know about some of the important training institutes of this corps and how to become part of them:
Armed Forces Medical College:
First of all, let’s talk about AFMC i.e. Armed forces Medical College, this college is located in Pune which started as ‘Army medical training center (AMTC)’ in 1942, later this AMTC, on May 01, 1948, was renamed and reestablished as ‘Armed forces Medical College’, and started its undergraduate wing in 1960.
Read Here: Armed Forces Medical College Passing Out Parade 15 May 2021
Armed forces medical college, Pune is a premier medical institution responsible for training undergraduate and postgraduate doctors. Undergraduate students are selected based on their NEET score and an MBBS degree is awarded to the students here.
The training of nursing officers is conducted for the BSc Nursing and Diploma in Nursing at the College of Nursing, Pune. The selection here is done based on the results of the Military Nursing Services exam.
AMC Center and School, Lucknow:
It originated from No.2 Company of the Indian Hospital Corps (IHC). The Army Medical Corps Center, Lucknow was created in 1963 as a result of the amalgamation of the AMC Center (North) with the AMC Center (South).
The AMC Center and School have been redesigned as the AMC Center and College from 16 November 2009 and the Officers Training School from the Officers Training College as of 16 November 2009.
Institute of paramedical sciences:
IPMS has been established in 2008 at the AMC Center and College Lucknow, designated as the nodal agency for the training of paramedical personnel of the Army Medical Corps. IPMS has been recognized by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare for the award of degrees/diplomas/certificates to paramedical trainees. Currently, diplomas are being awarded in 09 paramedical trades after successful completion of 104 weeks of training in IPMS (AMC Center & College) and designated training hospitals.
Modernization and Future:
The rapid technological changes and cradle to grave service commitments over the last two decades have evolved in many military medical services into essential areas such as coronary vein surgery, renal transplantation, malignant disease treatment and more. The Army Medical Corps, with its sister services in the Navy and Air Force, is the flagship facility with the government to influence welfare activity to serve government and defence personnel.
Read Here: Why 92 Base Hospital Is Considered Best In The Indian Army?
Importance of Army Medical Corps in the battle of COVID:
The Army Medical Corps has always helped the country with its capabilities not only during the war, whether it is to save the lives of wounded soldiers in Kashmir or to help the general public, even today when the whole of India is fighting with Covid, but it is also still the Army Medical Corps that has risen to the forefront and is working to build hospitals and help people in many places.
Read Here: MNS Officers Our Frontline Warriors During COVID-19 Wave
We hope that you too will soon become a part of this huge and great army and will make your supreme contribution in the service of the country.
