SOUTHERN COMMAND

SOUTHERN COMMAND

The Southern Command, India’s oldest field army has a history spanning over two centuries. Its origin, however, can be traced even earlier to the era of the East India Company in India in the 17th century and the evolution of the Presidency Armies. Pune was established as a military station in the early 1800s and has been synonymous with the Command since then. The Command came into existence in 1895. Today, the Command comprises of its two Corps, 12 and 21 located at Jodhpur and Bhopal. The Maharashtra, Gujarat and Goa Area, with its headquarter at Mumbai and the Andhra, Tamilnadu, Karnataka and Kerala Area with its headquarter at Chennai also come within its ambit. Southern Command encompasses nine States and four Union Territories covering nearly forty percent of the Country. Southern Command is also the only tri-service theatre. The Southern Command's sleeve patch with four stars in golden yellow. The formation sign of the Southern Command is the Crux commonly known as the Southern Cross. The sign is based on the four brightest star of the Crux constellation which has been a standard of navigation for millennia. As per Hindu astronomy, the Crux is referred to as Trishanku, a character in Hindu epics.