Becoming a Gurkha for the British Army

Hundreds of young Nepalese are put through their paces as they bid to joining the prestigious Brigade of Gurkhas.

These Nepalese men, aged between 17 and 21, are among the final 300 competing to join the Brigade of Gurkhas. At the end of the two-week selection process only the 126 candidates with the highest score overall will be selected.

Today's recruits need to be fitter and have more formal qualifications than their predecessors a generation ago. Among the requirements are a Standard School Leaving Certificate and ability to run 800m in two minutes 45 seconds, do 12 pull-ups and 70 sit-ups.

Success will mean a Western salary and a pension for life, together with the right to settle in Britain. Failure will see them return to their villages with only their reimbursed bus fares in their pockets.

But it is not just the money that attracts young men into the Gurkhas. As Nepal rises economically along with the rest of Asia, the old martial code of honour, the desire to travel and the thirst for adventure keep thousands of Nepalese boys applying to join the Gurkhas each year.


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