In 1856, the British Parliament passed the General Service Enlistment Act, a significant piece of legislation aimed at standardizing military service requirements for Indian soldiers.
This Act mandated that all Indian sepoys, or soldiers, could be deployed overseas if deemed necessary by the British authorities.
This requirement marked a notable shift in military policy, as it forced Indian soldiers to serve beyond their homeland, often in unfamiliar and challenging conditions.
The introduction of the Act occurred just before the outbreak of the Anglo-Persian War (1856-1857), a conflict that further highlighted the British military's need for a flexible and readily deployable force.
