Territorial Army recruits ESM as officers

Known as Citizens’ Army, the Territorial Army (TA) is composed of 31 Infantry Battalions and 19 Departmental TA Units such as Railway Engineer Regiments, Oil Sector and Ecological, Signals and General Hospitals Units. The TA which carries out operational tasks, internal security duties and aid to civil authorities in support of the regular Army, has been playing a commendable role. The TA units have also been embodied for the Operation Parakram and deployed with various defence units including protection of essential service and oil and natural gas installations in Gujarat.

The Territorial Army is part of Regular Army and its present role is to relieve the Regular Army from static duties and assist civil administration in dealing with natural calamities and maintenance of essential services in situations where life of the communities is affected or the Security of the Country is threatened and to provide units for Regulars Army as and when required.

By the late 1990s the Territorial Army had a strength of approx. 40000 persons comprising of Departmental TA units such as Railway, IOC, ONGC, Telecommunication and General Hospital and the non Departmental TA units of Infantry Bn (TA) and Ecological Bn (TA) affiliated to various Infantry Regiments.

The report of the KP Singh Deo Committee on TA and the recommendations of the Group of Ministers (GoM) to have been considered and implemented. This would make the TA a visible platform for disciplined and trained citizens from all walks of life to support the regular Army. The strength of the TA recommended to be 80,000- 100,000 by the year 2007 from its strength of 40,085 as in 2006. What is the present status? Can it be conjectured that the strength is 1,00,000 on paper only.

The Government had also accepted the provision of 20 per cent reserve of TA officers to remove the deficiency of Company Commanders in Infantry Battalions (TA). Women to be inducted in non- departmental as well as departmental units of TA, initially in the officers rank and, later, in the lower ranks. At present, women are serving only in the General Hospital and Signal Regiments of the TA. Compulsory inclusion of government employees in the TA were to be explored with the inclusion of private sector partnership, keeping in view the terrorist activities and danger to strategic enterprises. TA and ESM were to play a major role in the proposed 'Trans-Himalayan Development Authority'.

Territorial Army
Evolution of territorial Army
Territorial Army recruits male Graduate citizens of India and EX service men as officers

Comment: Territorial Army is supposed to be the reserve army. Who are running the organisation? Whether Indian Army or Ministry of Defence? It is shame that the organisation does not have a website or any information about recruitment. What is the fun of giving information in wikipedia? The organisation needs to wake up from its slumber and hibernation and give good and wide publicity so as to attract young talent to join the TA.