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NDA, IMA to cut training periods

Josy Joseph in New Delhi

Faced with an increasing demand for young officers, the Indian Army has decided to take several steps to increase its intake of officer trainees. Among the steps finalised by the Army Headquarters in New Delhi are cutting down of training period for officers and increasing the strength of batches admitted to both the National Defence Academy and the Indian Military Academy.

The cutting down of training period by six months alone would result in the intake of over a thousand more officers in the next two years, the army top brass said.

For the next two years the training periods at the National Defence Academy and the direct entry streams at the Indian Military Academy, Dehradun would be cut short by six months. The army believes that this will "partially meet the immediate requirement of officers in field units."

"There will, however, be no reduction in training for cadres at the Officers Training Academy Madras or for the Technical Graduate and Army Cadets College streams at the IMA who as it is undergo training for a period of only nine months and one year respectively," officials at the Army Headquarters said.

The army has been facing a severe shortage of officers in the recent past. While the overall shortage is in the region of 30 per cent, the shortfall in the ranks of captains and lieutenants is as high as 40 per cent, statistics reveal.

The decision to shorten the training period for the next two years will lead to an additional induction of 1,400 officers.

Simultaneously, by enhancing the training capacities of the academies, the annual intake is expected to increase by 1000 approximately. However, even after all this "the deficiency level will only be brought down to 20 per cent by the end of this decade and to 10-15 per cent by 2020," sources admitted.

"With the extensive involvement of the army in combating insurgency in the country, coupled with a distinct qualitative and quantitative increase in militant activities, particularly in the post-Kargil period, such large-scale deficiencies of young officers can no longer be ignored," the army top brass believes.

In a written note, it has pointed out that "considering that counter-insurgency operations are junior leader-centri, shortages in units have greatly hampered such operations, particularly in the extremely rugged terrain and hostile climatic conditions where such combat is generally carried out."

The note says the "need to increase the intake of officers has always been under continuous examination of the Army Headquarters.''

Over the years, "infrastructure has been partially created in the academies and the intake increased accordingly, though still not adequate enough to make up the entire shortage."

The recent blitzkrieg of advertisements in both print and electronic media has had a major impact, sources said. Along with the Kargil conflict, the ad series ('Do you have it in you?') has led to a massive increase in the number of applicants for all branches of the army

"However, a successful image projection campaign and the realisation that the army offered both an honourable career and an improved pay package have resulted in increased enthusiasm amongst the youth for services in the forces,'' the army note says.

"With such positive response, the army has decided to be equally responsive in meeting these aspirations by opening up all avenues to absorb additional cadets in the training academies without lowering the selection criteria," the note adds.

Under the proposed plan "there will be no tangible dilution in standards" and the restructured training has been "tailored to suit both immediate and long-term requirements of the army," a senior official said.

Cadets of both the NDA and the IMA will still "undergo training for and three-and-a-half years and one year respectively without any reduction in core training events especially designed to groom cadets as junior leaders."

"What will actually be condensed are only some low-priority extra-curricular activities, sports events and socio-military aspects, much of which will in any case be imbibed by these officers during the early years of service in their respective units."

The army has also dismissed fears that it could lead to a faster promotion to army officers compared to the air force and the navy. "There is no inter-service connectibility anyway," a senior official said, adding that "even at the highest level, the longest serving chief is appointed as the Chairman, Chiefs of Staff Committee.''

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