Annual-Report-MOD

Indian Navy Sailor Matric Recruit (MR) Notification – April 2020 Batch

ndian Navy Sailor Matric Recruit (MR) Notification – April 2020 Batch: Online applications are invited from unmarried male candidates (who fulfill eligibility conditions as laid down by the Government of India) for enrolment as sailors for 400 vacancies (Approximately) for Matric Recruit (MR) – Apr 2020 batch. Educational Qualifications: Candidate must have passed Matriculation Examination from the Boards of School Education recognised by MHRD, Govt. of India.

• Chef: They would be required to prepare food as per menu (both vegetarian and non-vegetarian including handling of meat products) and accounting of ration. In addition, they will also be allotted other duties as per Service requirement.
• Steward: They would be required to serve food in the officers‟ messes, as waiters, housekeeping, accounting of funds, wine and stores, preparation of menu etc. In addition, they will also be allotted other duties as per Service requirement.
• Hygienist: They will be required to clean washroom, shower spaces and other areas. In addition, they will also be allotted other duties as per Service requirement.

Age: Candidates should be born between 01 Apr 2000 to 31 Mar 2003 (Both dates inclusive).

Pay & Allowances: During the initial training period, a stipend of Rs. 14,600/- per month will be admissible. On successful completion of initial training, they will be placed in Level 3 of the Defence Pay Matrix (₹ 21,700- ₹69,100). In addition, they will be paid MSP @ ₹ 5200/- per month plus DA (as applicable).

Promotion: Promotion prospects exist up to the rank of Master Chief Petty Officer-I, i.e. Level 8 of the Defence Pay Matrix (₹ 47,600- ₹ 1,51,100) plus MSP @ ₹ 5200/- per month plus DA (as applicable). Opportunities for promotion to commissioned officer also exist for those who perform well and qualify the prescribed examinations.

Perquisites: (a) During the entire period of training and thereafter, sailors are given books, reading material, uniforms, food and accommodation as per entitlement. (b) Sailors are entitled to medical treatment, Leave Travel Concessions for self and dependents, Group Housing Benefits and other privileges. Sailors are also entitled to Annual and Casual Leave, Children Education and House Rent Allowances. Post-retirement benefits include pension, gratuity and Leave encashment. All perquisites are extended as per service conditions and their eligibility/admissibility is regulated as per Government orders in force and amended from time to time.

SELECTION CRITERIA: Selection of recruits is based on State wise merit of their performance in Computer-based Examination, subject to qualifying Physical Fitness Test (PFT) and fitness in Medical Examinations.

Computer-based Examination

• The question paper will be computer-based with a total of 50 questions, each carrying 01 marks.
• The question paper will be bilingual (Hindi & English) and objective type (multiple-choice).
• The question paper will comprise of two sections i.e. Science & Mathematics and General Knowledge.
• The standard of the question paper will be that of class 10th syllabus & sample papers for the examination are available on website www.joinindiannavy.gov.in.
• Duration of examination will be 30 minutes.
• The candidates are required to pass in all sections and in aggregate. The Navy reserves the right to determine the pass marks in each Section and in aggregate.
• Penalty for Wrong Answer: Candidates should note that there will be penalty (Negative Marking) for wrong answers marked by a candidate in the question paper. There are four alternatives for the answer to every question. For each question for which a wrong answer has been given by the candidate, one fourth (0.25) of the marks assigned to that question will be deducted as penalty.

Physical Fitness Test (PFT)

• Qualifying in Physical Fitness Test (PFT) is mandatory for selection.
• PFT will consist of 1.6 Km run to be completed in 7 minutes, 20 squat ups (Uthak Baithak) and 10 Push-ups. Candidates undergoing PFT will do so at their own risk.

Medical Standards

• Medical examination will be conducted by authorised military doctors as per medical standard prescribed in current regulations applicable to sailors on entry.
• Minimum height 157 cms. Weight and Chest should be proportionate. Minimum chest expansion of 5 cms. Details regarding minimum height standards for entry into the Indian Navy as Sailors, including applicable relaxations, can be accessed from the official recruitment website.
• The candidate must be in good physical and mental health, free from any defect likely to interfere with the efficient performance of duties both ashore and afloat under peace as well as war conditions as per Navy Order (Special) 01/2008. Extract of the Navy Order can be accessed from the official Indian Navy recruitment website.
• Preliminary Medical Examination for recruitment will be considered only “Provisionally fit subject to fitness in the final medical examination”. Final Enrolment Medical Examination of all selected candidates will be done at INS Chilka. Candidates who are found medically fit in Final Enrolment Medical Examination will be enrolled. Candidates who are found medically unfit will be advised to appeal against its findings, if they so desire, at INHS Kalyani, Visakhapatnam within a maximum period of 21 days.

Note:- Candidates are advised to get their ears cleaned for wax, and tartar removed from teeth prior to medical examination.

SELECTION PROCEDURE

Examination Fee: Candidates (except SC/ST candidates, who are exempted from payment of fee) are required to pay a fee of Rs. 205/- (Rupees Two hundred five only) through online mode by using net banking or by using Visa/ Master/ RuPay Credit/ Debit Card/ UPI. Admit Card for the online examination will be issued to those candidates who have successfully submitted the application and examination fee or are entitled to waiver off examination fee.

• The applications are to be filled online only on website www.joinindiannavy.gov.in and all required documents in original are to be scanned and uploaded.
• Candidates have to choose any two locations for online examination, as per their convenience. Candidates can be allotted any location view administrative reasons. Examination centre cannot be changed once selected by the candidate or allotted by the Indian Navy. Call up Letters cum Admit Card for online examination indicating date, time and place, which are scheduled during Sep 2019, would be required to be downloaded from the official website www.joinindiannavy.gov.in tentatively by one week before examination. Only Electronic mode of communication will be used while contacting the candidates at all stages of recruitment.
• The original documents uploaded by the candidates during online filling of application viz original certificates, mark sheets, Domicile certificate and NCC certificate (if held) are to be brought by the candidates at all stages of recruitment (Written Examination, PFT and Final Enrolment Medical at INS Chilka). If the details provided in „online application‟ are not matching with original documents at any stage, the candidature will be cancelled.
• Results of the online examination will be announced tentatively after 30 days. Approximately 1600 candidates will be called for PFT and Preliminary Recruitment Medical Examination. Allocation of centres for PFT and Preliminary Recruitment Medical Examination will be at the discretion of the Indian Navy. The qualifying cut off marks for appearing in PFT & Preliminary Recruitment Medical may vary from State to State for MR entry.
• Candidates who are qualified in PFT will undergo Preliminary Recruitment medical examination. Candidates declared Temporary Medically Unfit in the Preliminary Recruitment medicals can avail specialist review from the specified Military Hospital within a maximum period of 21 days. No further review/ appeal is permissible if declared unfit in the specialist review.
• Candidates declared Permanent Medically unfit in the Preliminary recruitment medical can appeal for specialist opinion in a Military Hospital on payment of Rs 40/- by Military Receivable Order (MRO) on Government Treasury within 21 days. Medical fitness certificate other than that of the specialist opinion in a Military Hospital will not be considered. No further review/ appeal is permissible.
• A State wise merit list will be published for candidates who have passed in PFT and Preliminary Recruitment Medical Examination depending upon vacancies. In case of candidates securing similar cut off marks in Computer Based Examination, the candidate with higher percentage in the qualifying examination i.e 10th will be selected for Final Enrolment Medicals at INS Chilka.
• The merit list will be available on website www.joinindiannavy.gov.in on 21 Feb 2020. All selected candidates will be called to INS Chilka for Final enrolment medicals. The selection of a candidate will stand cancelled and he will have no claim for enrolment in the Indian Navy in case the candidate fails to report on the date and time mentioned in call letter for final enrolment medical examination at INS Chilka. However, enrolment will be subject to Fitness in Final Enrolment Medical at INS Chilka.
• The candidate‟s selection pertaining to a particular batch is valid for that batch only. Qualified candidates whose names do not appear in the merit list cannot claim admission for the next batch. These candidates will have to undergo the selection procedure afresh, provided they meet the eligibility criteria for the fresh batch.
• All select listed candidates will be required to download Police Verification form and other associated forms along with the Call letter for Final Enrolment Medical Examination at INS Chilka. The candidates will be required to submit the same to INS Chilka after getting their antecedents verified on Police Verification form / Online police verification form from the Superintendent of Police of their respective jurisdiction. Candidates without the verified police verification reports or reports with adverse comments will not be eligible for enrolment. The format for the police verification form can also be downloaded from the website www.joinindiannavy.gov.in immediately after the declaration of select list, to ensure timely verification.
• No enquiry will be entertained regarding this recruitment/ enrolment after a period of six months.

HOW TO APPLY

• For this entry, the candidates can apply ONLINE ONLY on the official website www.joinindiannavy.gov.in from 26 Jul 19 to 01 Aug 19.
• Before filling online application, keep matric certificate & Mark sheet ready for reference.
• Register yourself on www.joinindiannavy.gov.in with your e-mail ID, if not registered already. The Applicants must ensure that while filling their Application Form, they are providing their valid and active e-mail IDs and mobile numbers.
• „Log–in‟ with the registered E-mail ID and Click on “Current Opportunities”.
• Click on “Apply” (√) button.
• Fill up the Form completely. Before clicking the „Submit‟ button make sure all the details are correct, all required documents are scanned in original & uploaded.
• Admit Card will be generated for only those candidates who have submitted the online application and have made the payment of examination fee or are entitled to waiver off examination fee.
• Candidates who have submitted the application on the last date of application submission, will get one additional day, to make payment of fees. Candidates who fail to make the payment even on the additional day will not be given further chance and hence their application will be cancelled.
• Photographs. THE PHOTOGRAPH TO BE UPLOADED SHOULD BE OF GOOD QUALITY WITH BLUE BACKGROUND.

In case of any difficulty faced by potential candidates they may contact IHQ MoD (Navy) through website www.joinindiannavy.gov.in.

The Indian bureaucracy seems to have a way of ensuring that every few months some ruling or the other is released which causes anguish to the serving security personnel and the veterans of the armed forces. This is surprising especially when the entire nation is unified in placing the same personnel on a pedestal due to the sacrifices rendered by them.

On social media, it feels good to be a soldier, largely due to the genuine adulation from scores of people who simply and honestly wish to support those who have chosen to serve the nation and taken the oath to place their lives on the line.

The latest of these orders creating much heartburn and perception among the veterans and future retirees of being let down is an order of the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT). The order has turned around a provision that goes back almost a hundred years (also reiterated through a ruling in 1970), which granted exemption from Income Tax to all those who exited service (prematurely invalidated or at the end of the contracted period) with a duly certified medical disability. This disability relates to aggravation of health due to service conditions, injuries suffered in the line of duty while facing the enemy, internal security duties or accidents attributable to service.

The CBDT order says that Income Tax exemption will apply only to those who were invalidated out of service and did not serve the full contract period. It won’t apply to those who exited due to retirement at the age of their achieved rank and with disability benefits.

How does the existing system work and why this whimsical reversal?

In order to comprehend the entire issue of disability a couple of aspects need clear explanation. First, service in the armed forces involves a tremendous commitment of the physical being. Security personnel have to take physical risk at most times placing themselves in the course of bodily harm in more ways than one. Long bouts of deployment under high altitude conditions where snow avalanches, depleted levels of oxygen and movement over terribly dangerous tracks by foot or vehicle can place life and limb at risk. Similarly pilots of all three services serve under conditions of high accident rates or risk to health due to such things as shock, G-factor or stress. There are always chances of injury for much of the Indian Army being deployed in operational commitments on the LoC or LAC or in internal security and counter terror operations.

Besides, there is acute stress that builds up when lives are under threat and the burden of responsibility is heavy. Responsibility exists in any job, but specifically military responsibility carries the onus of lives and even national territory, property and honour. A court of inquiry invariably examines every case of physical injury and determines whether the injury was attributable to service conditions. Battle casualties (BC) are automatically given BC status which means it is attributable to service. This is followed by a medical board of officers which determines the physical status of the individual, advisability to retain the casualty in service or invalidate him. Some may opt out to attempt to pursue an alternative career with the injuries sustained; thus invalidated out by choice or inability to be given sheltered appointment due to the nature of disablement. Others may be given sheltered appointments which do not require the usual rigours of service. There may be yet others who with their injuries may grit their teeth and continue to pursue every activity which is demanded from a soldier and compete for the limited vacancies of promotion to higher ranks. Three classic cases of war injured personnel need to be recounted to sensitize the reader to the challenges injured security personnel face and how they overcome them.

Major General Ian Cardozo, an infantry officer in service with his troops during the 1971 India-Pakistan War (as a Major) was in a uniquely challenging operational situation with little medical and logistics support to his unit. He severely injured his leg when he stepped on a mine. Ordinarily he would have bled to death but he grabbed a khukhri (a Gurkha knife used as a side arm), severed his own injured leg and asked his men to bury it; he survived.

He was a war disabled soldier, but chose to continue in service and sought command of his unit as a Lieutenant Colonel even as he wore an artificial limb over the stump of his leg. When asked to prove his ability to command as an injured soldier, he chose to march with his men 40 kilometers in the desert with full battle load, on an eventually bleeding stump. The then Army Chief certified him fit to command. He rose to be a Major General, one of the most respected figures in the Indian Army.

The Indian Army also had late Lieutenant General Pankaj Joshi who lost both legs in battle; he similarly never flinched from leading his men, passed the battle physical efficiency tests, commanded his unit and went on to become a Lieutenant General, raising the Headquarters Integrated Defence Staff in 2001 at the Commander in Chief level.

There is also Lieutenant General Vijay Oberoi, former Vice Chief of Army Staff, a battle amputee from India-Pakistan Conflict 1965, and an outstanding former military commander having also commanded the army’s Western Command and Army Training Command, and now an inspirational citizen. All these war heroes carried attributable disability and there are many like them who may have suffered injuries, not just in battle, but also under unique circumstances which service conditions throw up time to time. Thus far, the nation gave them the benefit of paying no Income Tax on their service and disability pension thus facilitating a little more affordability to their pockets in their older years when they can no longer earn a living.

Each disabled individual who retires at the concerned age of his rank has a medical board to certify the percentage of disability. That determines the amount of disability pension he will receive. The maximum disability pension (for security personnel with 100 percent disability) is 30 percent of the basic pay of the rank he retires in. If the basic pay is Rs 1,20,000, then the disability pension of an individual with hundred percent disability will be Rs 40,000. However, 100 percent disability is rare; mostly 50 or 75 percent may be granted.

Somewhere things went a little awry as they do over time. A retiring Director General Armed Forces (DGAFMS) whose responsibility was to ascertain and officially certify the percentage of disability of all retiring personnel, at the end of his service, wrote to the defence secretary with an insinuation that senior officers of the forces wrongly claim disability benefits. The letter, which has made the rounds of the media, also insinuated that senior officers intimidated their junior medical officers into certifying medical disability and categorisation near the time of retirement.

Instead of raising scandalous allegations, this officer should have evolved foolproof methods to make personnel undergo medical boards whose recommendations were verifiable at various levels. He was the senior most medical officer of the armed forces. Instead of cribbing and bleating, he should have displayed leadership in creating a near foolproof system.

A problem created by a few cases of dishonest securement of favourable disability verdicts from medical boards, surely could be rectified instead of creating a hullaballoo and giving the waiting bureaucracy one more issue to see the back of a facility enjoyed by veterans of the forces. The political community would hardly have played a role in this, but is guilty to the extent that the final approval is given by the political community. The rancour between the bureaucracy and the armed forces community is well to known. It should have shown more sensitivity and perhaps done far more interaction before approving a decision which probably would never have then been arrived at in the first place. It was also given that disincentivising disability is a sensitive subject.

Vilifying a whole community which has rendered yeoman service to the nation for the sake of a few who may attempt to exploit the rules cannot be in order. The fire of dishonesty has to be doused by better systems and not by blanket change of rules.

A delegation of senior and revered veterans must approach the Minister of Defence and the Prime Minister and sensitise them to the eroding confidence of the armed forces community regarding matters of their management. The Service Chiefs must institute a foolproof and verifiable system of management of disability. The restoration of Income Tax exemption for disability pension related cases must, of course, be taken up on priority.

Washington, July 13

India is likely to continue supporting Afghanistan with its financial and other assistance despite the US’ troop withdrawal to limit the Taliban, Pakistani and Chinese influence, the Pentagon has told the Congress.

In its latest report to the Congress on Friday, the Pentagon said a significant deterioration of security conditions in Afghanistan, however, may adversely affect the ability of India to provide aid to the war-torn country.

 With $3 billion in aid since 2001, India remains the largest regional donor to Afghanistan, the report said.

“In the event of a US drawdown in Afghanistan, India likely will attempt to continue its support to Afghanistan and try to limit Taliban, Pakistani, and Chinese influence,” the Pentagon said.

India desires a stable Afghanistan that does not harbour terrorists who could target Indian interests and does not have close ties with Pakistan, it said.

“There are no reports indicating that India has taken any serious action during the reporting period that would affect the situation in Afghanistan,” the Pentagon said.

It said that in the 1990s, India supported the former Northern Alliance and maintains contact with Afghan power brokers.

India has transferred a total of eight Mi-35 helicopters to the Afghan Air Force, four during 2015/2016 and four more during 2018.

“This aid marks a significant departure from India’s previous policy of providing only non-lethal military assistance,” the Pentagon told the Congress.

“Pakistani sensitivities towards Indian involvement in the country ultimately limited the assistance. Additionally, the Indian military provides procurement and training support to help professionalise the Afghan military and to improve its vehicle maintenance capabilities,” it said.

However, Indian aid to Afghanistan focuses primarily on four main categories: humanitarian assistance, major infrastructure projects, small and community-based projects, and education and capacity development, the report said.

US President Donald Trump in his new South Asia strategy unveiled in August 2017 had sought a major role for India in bringing peace in Afghanistan.

He had accused Pakistan of giving “safe haven to agents of chaos, violence, and terror,” and said the time had come “for Pakistan to demonstrate its commitment to civilisation, order, and to peace”.

In December last year, Trump had announced that the US would pull out troops from Afghanistan.

The US still has about 14,000 troops in Afghanistan, nearly 18 years after the US-led invasion to topple the Taliban. PTI

IAF Indian Air Force has published the recruitment notification for Airmen Recruitment Rally in Group Y Trade, Details Here

Rifat Mohidin

Tribune News Service

Srinagar, June 30

Residents in the Valley have raised questions over the demolition of more than 300 heritage cemented lamp posts along the Dal Lake.

A local shared a picture of broken lamp posts which have been dumped in a park near the lake, triggering a debate on the social media about why the lights were dismantled and replaced with cast iron pole lights.

The 350 cemented lamp posts with the state emblem engraved on them were installed in the late 1950s by then Prime Minister Bakshi Ghulam Muhammad.

The authorities, however, last year started dismantling them and replaced them with 9-foot-high cast iron pole lights.

To illuminate the lake area, the former PDP-BJP government had approved the Rs 8.6-crore project in March 2017 to install 5-metre-high 490 ornamental poles with 920 lamps from Dalgate to the Nishat crossing.

While the authorities say the lights had stopped working as they were old, the residents are angry, saying the authorities had taken a decision which was not environmental friendly.

“The old lights were better and suited well with the aesthetics of the place. Instead of dismantling them, they could have repaired them,” said Abdul Lateef, a resident of Buchwara.

He said the authorities seemed to be uninterested in maintaining the place as every year the footpaths circling the lake were dismantled and constructed afresh.

“This year again, some work has been done on the footpaths and much of it still remains. Why can’t it just be done once properly, why do we need to break and construct every year? We doubt all this is being done just to mint money,” he said.

An official in the administration said the cemented lamp posts were worn out and had been damaged at most places. He said the removal of the old lamp posts was ordered by the former state government.

“The lights in them had stopped working and they were removed last year,” he said.

Another official said the new lights were too high to serve the purpose of illumination.

“The height of the lamp posts does not allow the light to cover the area around it properly. It had also created a hue and cry last year. We don’t know why this decision was taken but it was taken by the government,” said an official from the Lakes and Waterways Development Authority.

Islamabad, July 30

ISLAMABAD:  At least 17 people, including two pilots and three military personnel, were killed and 12 others injured when a Pakistan Army aviation aircraft on a routine training flight crashed in a residential area in the garrison city of Rawalpindi early on Tuesday.

The plane crashed in the suburbs of Mora Kalu village, killing 12 civilians and five crew members and destroying five to six houses, the Pakistan Army said.

It said that all five crew members, including two pilots, were killed and 12 others were injured in the accident.

District commissioner Rawalpindi Ali Randhawa told the media that the incident occurred between 2:30 to 2:40 am when a small military plane which was on a training mission crashed in Rawalpindi.

The dead and injured were shifted to various hospitals of Rawalpindi, where paramedics said most of the victims were badly burnt.

Radio Pakistan also reported that 17 people were killed in the accident.

The cause of the crash is yet to be ascertained and the rescue operation was completed by the morning, the authorities said.

The village where the plane crashed is located close to the posh area of Bahria Town. Soon after the crash, a massive fire broke out that engulfed several houses in the locality.

Some of the locals have also uploaded pictures of the burning houses on social media.

Pakistan has a poor air safety track record, with plane and helicopter crashes occurring frequently over the years.

In 2016, a Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) plane carrying 48 people, including famous pop singer-turned-Islamic preacher Junaid Jamshed, his wife and Deputy Commissioner Chitral Osama Warraich, crashed and burst into flames in a hilly area near Abbottabad after facing engine problems.

In 2012, a Bhoja Airline plane, a Boeing 737 carrying 121 passengers and six crew members, crashed near Islamabad just just before touchdown.

The worst aviation tragedy on Pakistani soil came in July 2010 when an Airbus 321 passenger jet operated by the private airline Airblue crashed into hills overlooking Islamabad. The flight was coming from Karachi.

All 152 people on board were killed in the accident, which occurred amid heavy rain and poor visibility.

Another deadly civilian plane crash involving a Pakistani jet occurred in 1992 when a PIA Airbus A300 crashed into a cloud-covered hillside on its approach to the Nepalese capital Kathmandu, killing 167 people. PTI

Charanjit Singh Teja
Tribune News Service
Amritsar, July 26

The 20th anniversary of Kargil Vijay Diwas was observed at Punjab State War Heroes Memorial and Museum here on Friday. As many as 27 families of the martyrs from Amritsar, Tarn Taran, Gurdaspur and Pathankot were awarded during the function. Several army men who were disabled during war attended the function.

Speaking on the occasion, Additional Deputy Commissioner Himanshu Aggarwal said the Kargil martyrs sacrificed their lives for us and we should respect them. “We are enjoying all the comforts of our lives only due to army men serving on borders,” said Aggarwal. He paid tribute to the martyrs at Amar Jawan Jyoti and assured the families that the administration would owe it to the martyrs.

Jagir Kaur, mother of Gurjeet Singh Aujla, also attended the function. While addressing the families of the martyrs, she said, “The soldiers doing the toughest jobs on the borders of the country. We should pay respect them”.

Major General DD Singh, Major General Harvinder Singh, Col Kasmir Singh, Col Harkirat Singh, Col NS Randhawa, Brigadier Gian singh Sandhu, Lef Col Gurjinderjeet Singh, Col Ved Mittal, Col Saravinder Singh, Col Kuldeep Singh were present on the occasion.

Azhar Qadri
Tribune News Service
Drass (Kargil), July 26

The victory flame passed hands from one veteran to another and finally to Army Chief General Bipin Rawat on Friday as it reached its final destination at the Drass War Memorial here.

The flame — which was lit by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh at the National War Memorial in New Delhi on July 14 — was received at Drass by Major DP Singh (retired), a Kargil war veteran and India’s first amputee marathon runner.

The war veteran was 25 when he was hit by mortar fire in Akhnoor sector of Jammu and Kashmir. Following the injury, his right leg was amputated.

“I was among many soldiers who are not with us. To carry their memories in my hands, what more could I have asked for,” the retired officer said.

The flame reached Drass, the ground zero of 1999 Kargil war, on the last of the three-day commemoration of the 20th anniversary of the Kargil war victory.

Major Singh, who has ran in 21 marathons using a prosthetic limb, after receiving the flame at Drass handed it over to another Kargil war hero, Subedar Major Yogendra Singh Yadav. He was awarded the highest military decoration Param Vir Chakra for his role in the fight for Tiger Hill.

The victory flame after completing a 1000-km journey was finally handed over to the Army chief who merged it in the eternal flame at the Drass War Memorial.

The department of school education has estimated ₹6.68 crore for making National Cadet Corps (NCC) training compulsory for the students of government schools in border districts of Amritsar, Tarn Taran, Gurdaspur and Ferozepur, said sources in know of the development.

The decision was reached at a high-level meeting chaired by chief minister Captain Amarinder Singh on July 8. Under this project, compulsory NCC training will be provided to students of Classed 9 and 11 and first two years of college in all government schools and colleges in border districts.

This is among the few initiatives taken by the government to create awareness among students about the drug menace in the districts, which are prone to smuggling narcotics, and also prepare them for armed and paramilitary forces. The decision is based on a formal proposal submitted by district education officers (DEOs) to the finance department. “It will help youth to join armed and paramilitary forces, besides inculcating a strong sense of discipline among them”, said the chief minister while accepting the proposal.

As per education department record, there are 47,610 students in Class 9 and 40,775 students Class 11 in these districts. These districts have 365 high schools and 365 senior secondary schools.

A government official requesting anonymity said that hiring of one ex-serviceman of junior commissioned officer (JCO) rank in a block on contract basis has been proposed and a salary of ₹15,000 per month could be fixed for them. There are total 53 blocks and salaries will cost government around ₹71 lakh in nine months.

He said there will be a requirement of one ex-serviceman of hawaldar rank for every 10 schools to provide basic trainings to physical education teachers and oversee progress in these schools. Considering the number of schools, 730 hawaldar have been proposed for hiring which will cost around ₹65 lakh if they are paid ₹10,000 for nine months, he said.

“Around 88,385 students in these schools will need uniforms, which will cost government more that ₹ 5crore,” he added.

Amritsar district education officer (secondary) Salwinder Singh said they are ready to implement the plan but is awaiting formal guidelines in this regard from the government. Asked about the logic behind providing the training only to border districts, Tarn Taran DEO (S) Satnam Singh said, “Making border youth active is major reason behind it.”

Students, parents welcome move

“It is a good decision. NCC training will help students getting recruited in the armed forces,” said Vishal Singh, a Class 8 student of Government Senior Secondary School at Khilchian village in Amritsar.

“In border areas, there are limited employment opportunities, especially for girls. The move will be beneficial for us,” said Harmanpreet Kaur, a Class 10 student of Government High School at Phaloke village in Tarn Taran.

Harjit Kaur, mother of Gurbhej Singh studying in Khilchian school, said, “As the area is drug affected, making NCC compulsory will keep the students away from the menace.”

Surjit Singh of Rasoolpur village in Tarn Taran whose son is studying in the government school there, said, “Apart from providing NCC training, the government must also ensure job opportunities for them. The training is already underway in many schools, but very few get jobs in the forces”.