There is a shortage of 11,153, 1,403 and 1,368 officers in the army, navy and air force respectively, the Rajya Sabha was informed on Wednesday.

This deficiency has been continuing from a long time in varying degree and there is no shortage of personnel below officers ranks in the armed forces, Defence Minister A K Antony said in a written reply.

The armed forces have undertaken sustained image projection and pubilicity campaign to create awareness among the youth on the advantages of taking up a challenging and satisfying career, he said.

There have been shortfalls in the intake of cadets in the Indian Military Academy at Dehradun.

The shortfall in recruitment of officers in the services can be partly attributed to the change in the socio-economic environment, the change in career preferences and availability of employment opportunities in other sectors, Antony said.

No comparison of pay and allowances of Brigadiers and Lt Generals of the Indian Army has been made with that of their counterparts in Pakistan, he said.

There is a deficiency of officers in the ranks of Lt Col and below and is spread across all formations, he said.

There are 171 roads of strategic importance under construction in bordering areas since 1993 onwards.

The Border Roads Organisation has been restructured to provide sufficient manpower along with enhanced budget allocation so as to ensure timely completion, Antony said.