In 1902, the regiment, now designated as the 2nd Madras Infantry, was reconstituted with Punjabi Muslims, Sikhs and Rajputs. Next year, as a result of the reforms brought about in the Indian Army by Lord Kitchener, all Madras units had 60 added to their numbers, and the regiment's designation was changed to 62nd Punjabis. During the First World War, the 62nd Punjabis were sent to Egypt as part of the 10th Indian Division to protect the Suez Canal. The regiment played a major role in repulsing the Turkish offensive of 1915. After operating in the British colony of Aden later that year, they arrived in Mesopotamia on 31 December 1915. Here, they were engaged in fierce fighting on the Tigris Front, as the British made desperate efforts to raise the Siege of Kut al Amara, and later, during the British advance northwards. The regiment took part in the Battles of Hanna, Dujaila Redoubt and the Hai Salient. After serving on the Persian frontier for the rest of the war, the regiment returned to India in 1920. It suffered a total of 840 casualties during the war. Captain Claude Auchinleck, later Field Marshal and the last Commander-in-Chief of the British Indian Army, served with the 62nd Punjabis in Egypt and Mesopotamia.