The Territorial Army got its Act in 1948 and Rajagopalachari raised the force the following year

Background

The Territorial Army in its current form came into being when the Territorial Army Act was enacted on Aug 18, 1948. Initially the Territorial Army consisted of Infantry, Armoured Corps, Air Defence Artillery, Signals, Supply and other departmental units. It was formally raised by the first Indian Governor General Shri C Rajagopalachari on 09 Oct 1949, which has since been celebrated as Territorial Army Day. Apart from units affiliated to various regiments of the Indian Army, it has Home and Hearth battalions based on the concept of Sons of Soil. Engineer Territorial Army Battalions are deployed for maintenance of the Line of Control in Jammu and Kashmir. The Territorial Army also has 10 Ecological Territorial Army Battalions responsible for restoration of the ecological environment of the country, carrying out plantation in rugged and inhospitable terrain, reviving wetlands, restoring water bodies and building check dams for water conservation. Some Territorial Army battalions perform specialist tasks at the Indian Railways, Indian Oil Corporations and Oil and Natural Gas Corporation.