The recruitments for the British Gurkha in Nepal are not influenced by any factor and are fair, unbiased and merit-based, a senior British Gurkha official said in Kathmandu Tuesday.

"There are few agents running around asking for money from the recruit applicants saying they have liaison with the recruitment officers and could bolster the applicants, but they will have no bearing on the decisions made by the selection committee," AP Hill, major of British Gurkha, told reporters.

There is no question of compromise during the selection because the British Army want to recruit the best possible people, Hill noted. "The power to make the final decision is vested on me and external pressure will not influence me."

British Gurkha does not support the academies that have been opened to train the applicants because only the rich will be able to take benefit from them, Hill said.

The British Gurkha recruits 230 Nepali boys aged between 17-and-a-half and 21 after a series of physical and intelligence tests every year. "More than 15,100 boys have applied this year," Hill revealed.

British Gurkha, comprising of only Nepalese, has been an integral part of British Army for nearly two centuries due to their bravery. There are about 3,400 Gurkhas currently serving in the British Army and are especially active in places like Iraq, Afghanistan, Kosovo, Bosnia, and Brunei.

Source: Xinhua