The Gurkhas who have been on the forefront of battles for the British Army in Afghanistan and Falklands are to face the axe in UK's latest defence ministry redundancy programmes.
The UK-based Brigade of Gurkhas will lose as many as 150 jobs owing to sweeping cuts effected at the ministry. They will be part of 1000 soldiers and 1,600 Royal Navy personnel to be laid off.
When Gurkhas were awarded the same rights as British soldiers in 2009, after a high-profile campaign led by actress Joanna Lumley, they were allowed to serve for 22 years instead of 15, meaning that there are now more Gurkhas serving than are needed.
The Forces cull will amount to 17,000 jobs by 2015.
Some 5,000 personnel, including some on operations, were told on Monday that they are eligible for redundancy - voluntary or compulsory
- by their commanding officer, in
person or by telephone, The Times reported.
About 150 jobs of Gurkhas will be cut from the brigade, which has as many as 3,500 men, when the first batch of military redundancies takes effect in September.
Some areas, including non-Gurkha infantry, bomb disposal teams and Special Forces, are protected, but many others face anxious months of
waiting to hear their fate.
"It will be a period of uncertainty for those families who have been told they are eligible," said Catherine Spencer, of the Army Families Federation.
Labour criticised ministers for their "shabby" treatment of at-risk personnel who learnt about the cuts through the media.
Quoting an MoD source the report said: "Nobody wants to make the reductions set out last October, but we have no choice given the 38 billion pounds black hole left behind at
the MoD by Labour."