NEW DELHI: Four new National Cadet Corps (NCC) units have been raised in Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh, Lt Gen Gurbirpal Singh said on Friday. “While Kupwara and Kargil have one NCC Army unit each, Udhampur has got both Air Force and Army units,” said Lt Gen Singh, Director General of NCC.
The air wing, apart from drill and routine training, involves flying experience on gliders and microlites, which, sources said, might see the training of drones and remotely piloted air vehicles. A proposal is in the pipeline for inclusion of drone training in the curriculum. The approvals for these units were given in January 2024.
The NCC is the world’s biggest uniformed youth organisation. “The sanctioned strength of NCC cadets has increased from 17 lakh to 20 lakh with 40% being girls,” the DG said.
“NCC helps develop a sense of patriotism and leadership among youth with the help of various activities including military training and various socio-cultural programmes,” he added.
With the process to induct additional sanctioned strength, “the ex-servicemen are being inducted and trained as it will be a win-win situation both for the veterans and the NCC,” said an NCC official.
The NCC Republic Day camp 2025 will be attended by 2,361 cadets, including 917 girls, the largest number till date. “135 cadets from 18 friendly countries will participate in the camp under the Youth Exchange Programme,” Lt Gen Singh said.
The month-long camp will see the participation of cadets from across the country, including 114 from Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh, and 178 from the north-east, he said. A marching contingent of NCC will participate in the Republic Day parade at Kartavya Path.