An undated video of Indian Army soldiers allegedly destroying the phones of recruits has surfaced. In the video, two men in Indian Army clothes are destroying a bunch of phones with stones in front of the recruits lined up in a formation.

The video is reportedly shot in Mahar Regimental Centre situated at Saugor in Madhya Pradesh. The video has visuals of recruits and instructors in white training uniforms.

An instructor can be heard saying, “Maine tumko kitna samjhaya tha. Achchha khaasa tumhare phone rehte tumhare paas. Wahi hai naa, gadhe ke seengh nahi hote (How much did I tell you! Better, your phone would have stayed with you but as they say donkeys don’t have horns).”

Video Credit: YouTube/National Herald India

The video was even uploaded to the China Global Television Network’s website and YouTube channel, purportedly to shame the Indian Army.

According to The Times of India, such actions have been taken three or four times more since the filming of the video. It is said that the video was shot in 2015. Army officers said that such measures are taken if recruits repeatedly disobey the orders and breach discipline.

"The Army is all about discipline, which is critical in the face of an enemy. Recruits cannot flout discipline with impunity. The recruits are usually let off with a warning at first. Their phones are confiscated for some days if they continue to disobey orders," the TOI report quoted a senior Army officer.

The officer said that if these measures have no effect on the recruits, the phones are destroyed to send a “clear message”.

According to Army rules, mobile phones are not permitted during physical training, drill and weapon-training classes. Phones with cameras are not allowed inside many Army establishments as a security measure.

The personnel are repeatedly warned against the threat of data-stealing from their phones via an enemy espionage. Recently, troops along the Sino-Indian borders were ordered to delete many Chinese apps such as WeChat, UC browser, Weibo, Truecaller from their phones.