With the formal announcement of a ‘Tour of Duty’ concept, a new approach to recruiting soldiers for the armed forces has taken shape, the Economic Times has reported. The concept is designed to provide employment avenues for youth and also bring in major budgetary savings to the exchequer, the daily reported.
Mooted two years ago, this unique concept hinges on recruiting officers and soldiers on a fixed short-term contract into the armed forces. During this period on contract, they they would be trained and serve in diverse areas including counter insurgency operations, intelligence gathering and information technology.
In the past two years due to the Covid pandemic, recruitment for soldiers in the armed forces has been severely curtailed with official records showing that 1,25,364 vacancies are currently available in the Army, Air Force and Navy.
In anticipation of the proposal getting a go-ahead from the top leadership, briefings on the ‘tour of duty’ concept have taken place in the defence ministry this week, the daily has learnt.
First put forward by Army Chief Gen MM Naravane in 2020, there have been deliberations on its shape and scope at the top levels of the government in recent months.
Though the Armed Forces are yet to reveal the contours of the final plan, the original concept was to bring in soldiers, both for general and specialised duties, for a fixed period of three years. This would be a major policy shift from earlier policy of Armed Forces of permanent recruitment in which soldiers serve for varying lengths of time. The catchment areas for recruitment could also be significantly expanded.
Most of the soldiers, at the end of three years, would be relieved from duty and would get assistance from the armed forces for further employment avenues. For such trained and disciplined youth who have served their nation, corporate India is believed to have interest in reserving jobs.
If a considerable number of soldiers are taken in under the tour of duty concept, initial calculations by the armed forces had projected thousands of crores in savings in pay, allowances and pension. In case vacancies are available, the best among the recruited youth could also get an opportunity to continue their service.
The tour of duty concept, besides lowering costs and making thousands of trained youth available for employment each year, would also encourage specialised entry into the armed forces. Students from prestigious colleges like the IITs who can contribute towards expanding the high technology drive in the armed forces could be encouraged to serve for a short tenure following which they can pursue careers in the civilian world.
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