If you’re one of the many Engineering or Industrial Training Institute (ITI) graduates who have been struggling to find a job, then this announcement from the Indian Army might come as welcome news. The Recruiting Organisation of the Indian Army has decided to focus on Engineering and ITI students to recruit in its ranks as jawans, particularly in the technical cadre, said Brig Sangram Dalvi, Deputy Director General, Headquarters, Recruiting Zone, who addressed the media recently.
As Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh have a large number of Engineering colleges, this young segment aged between 17 to 23 would be their focus in these States. There are 5,889 vacancies for jawans in TN, AP and Telangana this year, 2,413 of which are for TN. The vacancies are non-transferable between States. Vellore, Thiruvannamalai, Madurai and Theni have contributed the most to the Army so far from TN, whereas Chennai’s representation is the least.
“Engineering graduates don’t get enough job opportunities. They could instead join the army and get paid a minimum of Rs 24,000,” said Dalvi.
Procedure
All applicants who have cleared the Class X examinations are eligible to apply. The Education and Revenue Department scrutinises the documents (Class X and identity certificates). Once their documents are cleared, applicants are required to appear for a run of 1.6 km, which they must finish within six minutes. There are 12 recruitment rallies this year. Those who qualify go on to the physical measurement test, where biometric verification is conducted and their height is measured. All candidates who have failed the fitness test are sent to the military hospital, as only the military hospital specialist has the right to reject a candidate.
Successful candidates are again checked by three medical officers to make sure they are fit and healthy. Then they proceed to the final stage, which is the written test. They are tested on Class X syllabus.
Training
Selected candidates are given an admission card and sent for training. The average monthly pay during training is Rs 24,000. If posted in tier 1 cities like Chennai, they may even get paid around Rs 35,000. They are entitled to free ration and clothing. They are also entitled to 60 days of annual leave and 30 days of medical leave.
Challenges
“Language barrier is one of the challenges that the Army faces at present. People with knowledge of the local language are not posted in the State they hail from. Moreover, the written test is currently being offered only in Hindi and English due to which people from other States have difficulty in passing. The Recruitment Zone has made a case for the written test to be conducted in regional languages as well,” said Dalvi.
He also lamented the lack of awareness about the opportunities available in the Indian Army.
“Crowd management has been difficult as well. On an average day, about 10,000 to 15,000 candidates apply. A majority of them get rejected in the first stage itself. This is because the candidates do not check the eligibility criteria properly and submit improper documents,” said Dalvi.
Misconceptions
There is a common misconception among candidates that the system is unfair. “They assume that they need to pay middlemen at every stage in order to get selected. Our main concern is to prove the fairness of the system. Even children of staff members have been rejected as they were found to be ineligible. Candidates need to be aware that they can’t count on any outside influences and bribe their way in. The misconception about paying bribes has also led to a decrease in the number of applications,” said Dalvi.
New Developments
The Recruitment Department is in the process of preparing a one-year programme for candidates, which will help them prepare for different stages of the selection process. They also plan to start a chat system within the next few days to answer queries directly. Rural areas and violence-inflicted areas are given more focus. For example, Adilabad, a naxal affected area in Telangana sends out a large number of candidates. These measures are taken with the aim of providing equal opportunities to all sections of the economy, said Dalvi.
Speaking about opportunities for women, Dalvi said, “Admittedly, women are currently being employed only in the Officers’ cadre.” However, it is good news for men as Dalvi concluded, “The Indian Army has a large number of opportunities; have faith in the system and make use of these opportunities.”
If you’re one of the many Engineering or Industrial Training Institute (ITI) graduates who have been struggling to find a job, then this announcement from the Indian Army might come as welcome news. The Recruiting Organisation of the Indian Army has decided to focus on Engineering and ITI students to recruit in its ranks as jawans, particularly in the technical cadre, said Brig Sangram Dalvi, Deputy Director General, Headquarters, Recruiting Zone, who addressed the media recently.
As Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh have a large number of Engineering colleges, this young segment aged between 17 to 23 would be their focus in these States. There are 5,889 vacancies for jawans in TN, AP and Telangana this year, 2,413 of which are for TN. The vacancies are non-transferable between States. Vellore, Thiruvannamalai, Madurai and Theni have contributed the most to the Army so far from TN, whereas Chennai’s representation is the least.
“Engineering graduates don’t get enough job opportunities. They could instead join the army and get paid a minimum of Rs 24,000,” said Dalvi.
Procedure
All applicants who have cleared the Class X examinations are eligible to apply. The Education and Revenue Department scrutinises the documents (Class X and identity certificates). Once their documents are cleared, applicants are required to appear for a run of 1.6 km, which they must finish within six minutes. There are 12 recruitment rallies this year. Those who qualify go on to the physical measurement test, where biometric verification is conducted and their height is measured. All candidates who have failed the fitness test are sent to the military hospital, as only the military hospital specialist has the right to reject a candidate.
Successful candidates are again checked by three medical officers to make sure they are fit and healthy. Then they proceed to the final stage, which is the written test. They are tested on Class X syllabus.
Training
Selected candidates are given an admission card and sent for training. The average monthly pay during training is Rs 24,000. If posted in tier 1 cities like Chennai, they may even get paid around `35,000. They are entitled to free ration and clothing. They are also entitled to 60 days of annual leave and 30 days of medical leave.
Challenges
“Language barrier is one of the challenges that the Army faces at present. People with knowledge of the local language are not posted in the State they hail from. Moreover, the written test is currently being offered only in Hindi and English due to which people from other States have difficulty in passing. The Recruitment Zone has made a case for the written test to be conducted in regional languages as well,” said Dalvi.
He also lamented the lack of awareness about the opportunities available in the Indian Army.
“Crowd management has been difficult as well. On an average day, about 10,000 to 15,000 candidates apply. A majority of them get rejected in the first stage itself. This is because the candidates do not check the eligibility criteria properly and submit improper documents,” said Dalvi.
Misconceptions
There is a common misconception among candidates that the system is unfair. “They assume that they need to pay middlemen at every stage in order to get selected. Our main concern is to prove the fairness of the system. Even children of staff members have been rejected as they were found to be ineligible. Candidates need to be aware that they can’t count on any outside influences and bribe their way in. The misconception about paying bribes has also led to a decrease in the number of applications,” said Dalvi.
New Developments
The Recruitment Department is in the process of preparing a one-year programme for candidates, which will help them prepare for different stages of the selection process. They also plan to start a chat system within the next few days to answer queries directly. Rural areas and violence-inflicted areas are given more focus. For example, Adilabad, a naxal affected area in Telangana sends out a large number of candidates. These measures are taken with the aim of providing equal opportunities to all sections of the economy, said Dalvi.
Speaking about opportunities for women, Dalvi said, “Admittedly, women are currently being employed only in the Officers’ cadre.” However, it is good news for men as Dalvi concluded, “The Indian Army has a large number of opportunities; have faith in the system and make use of these opportunities.”
— blessy@newindianexpress.com