Bangladesh Military Academy (BMA) is the military training institute for the officer cadets of Bangladesh Army. It is located in Bhatiary, near Chittagong Hill Tracts, in the Chittagong District of south-east Bangladesh, about 13 kilometers north of Chittagong. The academy is situated on the slopes of the Sitakunda hill ranges and the shore of the Bay of Bengal.
History
Following the independence of Bangladesh with the break-up of Pakistan in the Bangladesh Liberation War of 1971, Bangladesh Military Academy was established in January 1974 for training the officers of the Army. The Military Academy was opened by the initiative of the then Prime Minister Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. The academy was initially raised at Cumilla Cantonment on 29 November 1973 and later relocated to Bhatiary, Chattogram in 1976. The academy was awarded the National Standard in 1979.
The Bangladesh Military Academy provides training to the officers of the Bangladesh Army. From 1983 the officers of the Bangladesh Navy and Air Force must take three months training from the academy.
The academy chose a verse by national poet Kazi Nazrul Islam, Chiro Unnata Momo Shir (translation: ever high is my head) as its motto. Regular long courses commenced from 1978. The first batch of officers of Bangladesh Army graduated from the academy on 11 January 1975.
Honour code
An Officer Cadet / Officer Cadet (Female) shall lead a life of Honour and Integrity. He / She shall not lie, cheat or steal
Mission
To prepare the officer cadets for the grant of commission as officers in Bangladesh Army
Objective
To instill in the trainees the qualities of a leader imbibed with the national, societal and religious values, military tradition and dedication to a lifetime service to the nation. To train each Trainee Officer and Officer Cadet as a competent Infantry Platoon Commander committed to professionalism. To educate each Officer Cadet as a knowledgeable university graduate with inspiration to pursue higher education.
Training
BMA provides military and academic training and character building. The academy primarily trains men and women to be commissioned into the Bangladesh Army. In addition, the academy conducts and orientation course for Bangladesh Civil Service (BCS) officers, officer cadets and midshipmen of the Bangladesh Air Force and Navy respectively, and Pre-Commission Training for professor/teacher under-officers of Bangladesh National Cadet Corps (BNCC). Long Course cadets graduating from this academy fall under Bangladesh University of Professionals (BUP) curriculum. The academy has the intention of fostering and inculcating those attributes in an Officer Cadet (OC) which will ensure his continuous and progressive development as a regular officer in the Bangladesh Army, and developing future officers for the Bangladesh Army by training the Officer Cadets in a way that they can make decisions as and when required by the military profession.
Training course
The training courses run at BMA are as follow:
Long Course – 3 years. BMA Special Regular Course – 24 weeks. Basic Military Training Course – 24 weeks. Joint Services Course – 10 weeks (Bangladesh Navy cadets and Bangladesh Air Force cadets). Direct Short Service Commission – 49 weeks Potential Platoon Commanders Course – 05 weeks. Drill Instructor Course – 07 weeks. BCS Officers Orientation Course weeks (01 week in BMA) – 05 weeks. Post Commission Academic Training (PCAT) - Final Semester of Bangladesh University of Professionals (BUP) (4–6 months)
Tactical training
This includes lecture, tutorial discussion, model discussion, tactical exercise without troops, demonstration and field training exercise on all types of major and minor operations of war.
Field training exercise
First term
a. Exercise Bajramusti – To impart the basic knowledge to the cadets/ trainee officers about formation of troops in patrol.
b. Exercise Padakkhep 1 – 1. To enhance the physical and mental endurance of cadets/ trainee officers in forced march in a difficult terrain.
c. Exercise Padakkhep 2 – 2. To enhance the physical and mental endurance of cadets in forced march in x-country route/ terrain.
d. Exercise Dhumketu – To impart practical lesson to the cadets/ trainee officers in planning, preparation and conduct of raids.
e. Exercise Moronfad – To impart practical lesson to the cadets/ trainee officers on planning, preparation and conduct of ambush.
Second term
f. Exercise Louhokapat – To impart practical lesson to the cadets on the technique and mechanism of positional defence at company level within the frame work of an Infantry Battalion.