Dhoni on patrol duty with Army in Valley in August

Hyderabad: Lieutenant Colonel (honorary) M.S. Dhoni would be commanding a company in the Army’s Victor Force headquartered in Awantipora of South Kashmir and is likely to be assigned to road opening parties (RoP) and road domination besides patrolling the garrison and guard duty, senior Army officials said.

According to sources, Dhoni will stay with the unit for 7 days. For the other 7 days he will go out to engage in social activities which will include meeting with students of four goodwill Army schools and playing cricket with five teams in the Kashmir Valley.  

“He will be commanding a company which will comprise an officer, five JCOs (junior commissioned officers) and 80 to 100 men. Like all of us, he will be expected to be on duty 24 hours. He will be assigned duties of securing the perimeter of the garrison besides RoP and road domination which is critical for the movement of Army convoys across Kashmir,” a senior Army official from Jammu and Kashmir told this newspaper over telephone.

According to the official, Dhoni will have to up at 4 am and get ready before 6 am, just like everyone else. “For RoP duties, which is a very important job, his company will have to start early in the morning and sanitise the route to be taken by Army convoys, using metal detectors and scanners to check if there are IEDs planted along the road. Once they give the clearance, the convoys will move. Thereafter, the company will dominate the road from vantage points to ensure there is no obstruction or firing from any side,” the official said.

Dhoni will join the Territorial Army (TA) unit of the 106 Parachute Regiment (106 Para TA battalion) on July 31 and will stay with them till August 19.

“The TA normally assists other battalions in the Infantry Brigade during operations. While Dhoni will not be part of any active operation, he will be part of all other duties the TA is expected to do. The TA forms the second line of support,” another Army officer said.

While the Army’s Romeo Force is located in Rajouri district of J&K, the Kilo Force in  Kupwara, the Victor Force, of which Dhoni will now be a part, is located in Awantipora in  South Kashmir, considered a sensitive area from the terrorism point of view.

Usually Territorial Army (TA) army officers have to serve for two months every year in the unit. However, Dhoni is “honorary” officer of Territorial Army (TA) and doesnt need to serve for two months in the unit. “People who are of national or internartional repute are made honorary officer as they act a source of motivation,” said sources.