Welfare of the ex-Servicemen: Survey and Statistics of Special Skills Vital

Governor, CM for conducting census of ex-Servicemen to enlarge their welfare
Saturday, 03 03 2012 10:08
J&K Rajya Sainik Board meets
JAMMU, MARCH 2 - N. N. Vohra, Governor, and Omar Abdullah, Chief Minister, today called for conducting a district wise survey of ex-Servicemen to assess their number and the area-specific requirements for enlarging their rehabilitation and welfare.
The Governor and the Chief Minister were addressing the 74th meeting of the J&K Rajya Sainik Board, at Raj Bhavan, here today.
The Governor, chairing the meeting, observed that such a survey would facilitate a meaningful review and prioritization of the ongoing schemes and re-orienting them, as required, for enhancing the welfare of the ex-Servicemen and their families.
Emphasizing the need for taking all required measures for re-orienting and upgrading the skills and capacities of ex-Servicemen, the Governor observed that this would enhance their employability and placements in the job market. He observed that the State has a significant population of ex-Servicemen who possess valuable experience, skills and technical expertise in different fields, adding that this potential needs to be gainfully exploited for the overall benefit of the society at large. He noted that, to secure this objective, an appropriate mechanism could be put in place for providing counseling to the ex-Servicemen.
Referring to the vast growth potential in the various sectors of the State’s economy for generating wealth and employment avenues, the Governor said that the ex-Servicemen, like other unemployed persons, could go in for setting up units in poultry, dairy and fish farming, sheep and goat rearing, mushroom cultivation and floriculture. He said that all these sectors have a ready market and the ex-Servicemen should be encouraged to form cooperative units for securing assured economic returns.
While taking stock of the pace of progress on the construction of Sainik Bhawans at various places in the State, the Governor stressed their time bound completion to avoid time and cost over-runs and for early providing this facility to the ex-Servicemen. Omar Abdullah, Chief Minister, said that he had ordered the creation of a Special Cell in the State Home Department to coordinate further action on all issues relating to ex-Servicemen, for securing their improved welfare.
The Rajya Sainik Board reviewed in detail the progress made in regard to the construction of Sainik Bhawans at Srinagar, Jammu, Rajouri, Kargil and Kupwara. The acquisition of land for Sainik Welfare Housing Colonies also came under review at the meeting. The Governor thanked the Chief Minister for enabling timely decisions in regard to various pending issues and for setting up a Special Cell in the State Home Department to look after the welfare of the ex-Servicemen and observed that this should be recorded in the proceedings of the Board’s meeting.
Later, the Governor chaired the meeting of the State Managing Committee for Funds, and focused on the budgetary support being provided by the State Government to the Department of Sainik Welfare, as also the contribution of the Kendriya Sainik Board to the J&K Rajya Sainik Board. He emphasized the need for evolving appropriate strategies for enhancing the mobilization and collection of funds at all levels, for maximizing the welfare of ex-Servicemen and their families.
The meeting among others was attended by R. S. Chib, Minister for Youth Services and Sports; Raman Bhalla, Minister for Revenue; Iqbal Khandey, Principal Secretary, Finance; Navin Kumar Choudhary, Principal Secretary to the Governor; Lt. Gen. B. S. Pama, Chief of Staff, Northern Command; Maj. Gen. Pramod Behl, Director General Resettlement, New Delhi; Sheikh Mushtaq Ahmad, Secretary, General Administration; Comdr H. C. Sharma, Joint Director, Kendriya Sainik Board, New Delhi; Brig. Biswajeet Mukherjee from 15 Corps; Brig. Pankaj Saxena, 26 Div; Brig. Suresh Menon, 16 Corps; Col. J. S. Chauhan, Director, Resettlement, Zone North; A. A. Khan, Additional Secretary, Home; Maj. Gen. (Retd) G. S. Jamwal, President, J&K Ex-Services League; and non-official members, Lt Cdr (Retd) J. P. Kotwal; Hony Capt Bana Singh; Hony Capt Sohan Singh and B. S. Slathia, Advocate, President Bar Association, Jammu besides other official and non-official members.
A detailed power point presentation was made by Brig. (Retd) R. S. Langeh, Secretary, Rajya Sainik Board, on the occasion, detailing the measures taken for the welfare of the Ex-Servicemen, financial status of the Board, construction of Sainik Bhawans and the implementation of the various decisions taken in the last meeting of the Board.
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Concrete Steps for Welfare of Ex Servicemen

Ten Percent of Group ‘B’ Posts in Paramilitary Forces to be Filled up by Ex-Servicemen
Government Aggressively Pursuing Measures for Welfare of Ex-Servicemen: Antony
The Ministry of Home Affairs has agreed to fill 10% of the Group ‘B’ posts in Central Paramilitary Forces from among Ex-Servicemen. Disclosing this at the meeting of the Parliamentary Consultative Committee attached to his ministry here today, the Defence Minister Shri AK Antony said efforts are now being made to persuade public sector undertakings and the private sector to tap this invaluable reservoir of talented and disciplined Ex-Servicemen.

Shri Antony said the Government is taking ‘aggressive measures’ for the all-round welfare and well-being of Ex-Servicemen. He said the health of the Ex-Servicemen and their dependents is a prime concern for the government. Giving details of the Ex-Servicemen Contributory Health Scheme (ECHS) which has been operating since April 2003, Shri Antony said, presently the scheme caters to 38 lakh beneficiaries including 12 lakh Ex-Servicemen and over 26 lakh dependents. Initially, 227 polyclinics had been approved by the Cabinet. Later, in 2008 another 199 polyclinics were sanctioned, out of which 20 are functional and 179 polyclinics are in various stages of implementation. This scheme is currently being implemented through 247 polyclinics. Shri Antony said the reach and coverage of the scheme can be easily appreciated from the fact that during 2010-11, a total of 89 lakh patients attended the polyclinics. He hoped that with the commissioning of all the sanctioned polyclinics the entire fraternity of Ex-Servicemen would be covered comprehensively.

Cutting across party lines the Members of Parliament wholeheartedly appreciated the contribution of the Armed Forces personnel in ensuring the security and territorial integrity of the country as also their contribution in providing relief during natural calamities. They wanted to know the latest status as far as the demand for ‘One Rank One Pension’is concerned. The members also suggested that seats for the children of serving Armed Forces personnel and Ex-Servicemen should be reserved in all medical and dental colleges. Some members felt that there should be periodic inspection of the ECHS facilities so that the quality of service rendered by these units are kept high at all times. There was also a suggestion that the few surviving veterans of Second World War and war-widows should be given higher pension for dignified livelihood. Other suggestions were that the government should take urgent measures to build a suitable National Memorial for martyrs in the national capital and inclusion of the Members of Parliament in the Zila Sainik Board meetings.

Replying to queries Shri Antony said the issue of setting up of a war memorial in the capital is a long pending one. He said serious discussions are now on and hoped that the issue may be settled in the near future.

Referring to the issue of ‘One Rank One Pension’ Shri Antony said that the UPA government has twice increased the pension amount of Ex-Servicemen. He said the issue is not a closed chapter but it has to be approached in a phased manner. ‘Sincerity of the government is very much evident on the issue’, Shri Antony said.

Speaking on the occasion the Minister of State for Defence Shri MM PallamRaju said MoD is working with National Skill Development Corporation to upgrade the skills of Ex-Servicemen so that they can be gainfully employed in various sectors of the economy.

Members of Parliament who attended the meeting included Shri Naveen Jindal, Shri GajananDharmshi Babar, Shri Rakesh Singh, Shri SS Ramasubbu, Shri Gopal Singh Shekhawat, DrShashiTharoor, Shri Ram Chandra Khuntia, Shri BalwantAlias BalApte, Shri Veer Singh, DrMahendra Prasad, Shri HK Dua, Shri Ishwarlal Jain and ShriPiyushGoyal. The Secretary Ex-Servicemen’s Welfare Shri SamirendraChatterjee, the Secretary Department of Defence Production Shri ShekharAgarwal and other officials of the Ministry of Defence also attended the meeting. SitanshuKar/NN (Release ID :78716)
Ten Percent of Group ‘B’ Posts in Paramilitary Forces to be Filled up by Ex-Servicemen

Fauji Bicycle- words of wisdom

Fauji Bicycle- words of wisdom
You may have heard the story of the young officer 50 yrs ago, when he got a cycle loan and purchased one from the unit canteen.
The cycle was a beauty (the way mobikes/cars are today) but did not have a carrier at the back.
So he sent his orderly to get one fixed.
When the cycle came back with the carrier fitted, the Y.O. noted that the stand was missing.
He went to the CSD authorised cycle dealer and asked him why the stand had been removed.
He was told, "Sahibji, Fauj me ek hi cheeze mil sakti hai- Career ya Stand.
Agar stand loge to Career khatam or agar career banana hai to stand kabhi mat lena."

सैन्य साइकिल
आप 50 साल पहले युवा अधिकारी की कहानी सुना हो सकता है, जब वह एक चक्र ऋण मिल गया और एक इकाई कैंटीन से खरीदा है.
चक्र एक सौंदर्य (वैसे मोटर बाइक और कारें हैं आज) था लेकिन पीठ पर एक वाहक नहीं है.
तो वह अपने अर्दली भेजा करने के लिए एक तय हो.
जब चक्र सज्जित वाहक के साथ वापस आया, युवा अधिकारी ने कहा कि खड़े याद कर रही थी.
वह सीएसडी अधिकृत चक्र डीलर के पास गया और उससे पूछा कि क्यों खड़े हटा दिया गया था.
उन्होंने कहा, सर था, "में सेना एक बात शानदार सफलता कैरियर है या खड़े रहो.
अगर आपको एक स्टैंड से अपने कैरियर समाप्त हो गया है, लेकिन आप अपने कैरियर से कभी कभी अपनी साइकिल के लिए एक स्टैंड ठीक करना चाहते हैं चाहिए के लिए चुनते हैं.

NCC a solution to manpower shortage in forces: Parliamentary panel

Thursday, April 15, 2010, 17:57 IST
New Delhi: With the Army, Navy and Air Force hard-pressed over shortage of officers, a Parliamentary panel today suggested increasing the intake of NCC cadets in the three defence services as a plausible solution to their manpower problem.

While the Army faces a shortage of 11,456 officers, the Navy and the Air Force suffer a gap of 1,439 and 1,343 officers, respectively.

"The Committee finds that there is an urgent need to give more attention to the National Cadet Corps (NCC), whose main objective is to groom the youth into disciplined and patriotic citizens...NCC training would definitely help the three services in solving the problem of shortage of officers," the Parliamentary Committee on Defence said in its latest reported tabled in Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha.

The Army has a sanctioned strength of 46,614 in the officer cadre, while the existing strength is 35,158 officers. The Navy's sanctioned strength of officers is 9,293 and existing strength 7,854. In the IAF, the sanctioned officer cadre strength is 12,183 and borne strength is 10,840.

The Defence Ministry had informed the committee that it took steps to address the manpower shortage in the three services which included sustained image projection and publicity campaign, participation in career fairs, advertisements in print and electronic media, counselling and motivational talks in schools, colleges and NCC camps.

The panel felt these steps were in the right direction, but a desired focus on the NCC cadets was not being given.

"The committee is of the firm view that there is an urgent need to enrol more schools and colleges, both government and private, for NCC," it said, recommending that the Ministry undertake a survey to know the percentage of NCC students who have actually joined the three services.

The training institutions of the three armed forces -- the National Defence Academy, the Indian Military Academy, the Naval Academy and the Air Force Academy -- have a percentage of seats reserved for NCC 'C' certificate holders and the allotted seats are usually super-subscribed, as NCC cadets join the academies from the general quota also.

Noting that the implementation of the Sixth Pay Commission recommendations has had a positive impact by making the armed forces as an attractive career option for the youth, the panel also recommended that the Ministry should consider recruiting retired officers for supervisory jobs, an area where the three services were finding it difficult to get the requisite manpower. PTI
NCC a solution to manpower shortage in forces: Par panel

Careers at Sea and in Shipping

A sea career offers early responsibility, a challenging job with good prospects and an opportunity to acquire qualifications that are internationally recognized and transferable. It is possible to achieve senior rank at an early age, to earn a decent salary while enjoying world travel, and experience the sea in all its moods.

Shipping is increasingly specialized and there are great differences between the operations of different types of ship and their patterns of trade. The operation of a Very Large Crude Carrie (VLCC) is very different from life on a short sea container ship, a cruise ship or ferry. Nevertheless the huge variety of different trades must surely be an attraction in itself.

There are however, certain common characteristics that the person seeking a sea career ought to have. A ship is a small society, and the successful seafarer needs to have patience, tolerance and rub along harmoniously with people of different cultures. A disciplined approach to life and a degree of self sufficiency will be an advantage.

Ships’ officers are usually trained as cadets and undertake a blend of college and at-sea training, with a number of statutory examinations as they progress through the ranks. It is usual to specialize as a deck officer, responsible for navigation and cargo, or as a marine engineer officer, responsible for the ship’s technical systems, although it is now possible to train for dual deck/engineroom licenses. Ratings (non officer class) are usually general purpose trained and work either on deck or in the engineroom. There is a range of specialized training available for particular ship types such as tankers, or gas ships.

From the cadetship, a young officer progresses into a junior officers’ post either as a watch-keeping deck officer or a junior engineer, after more study and sea time there will be opportunities for promotion to senior officers positions and eventually to a job as master or chief engineer, highly responsible and challenging roles.

But the sea career offers further opportunities into a whole range of associated marine industry careers ashore in what is described as the “maritime infrastructure” that supports the ships at sea and provides services to the industry. Superintendency, ship management, technical operations, port management, surveying, marine education, pilotage, marine equipment, hydrography, marine safety and regulation are just some of the further careers available to sea-trained officers.

Some people are perfectly happy to spend their whole career at sea, valuing the longer leaves that are compensation for time at sea, but not infrequently an officer will elect to move from the sea into one of the these associated professions.

The shipping industry itself offers other careers for people who prefer to follow a commercial path, moving into ship broking or marine insurance, working ashore in shipping companies or agents. Ashore or afloat, the marine professional does an essential job, which can be fulfilling and very interesting.

Kind Courtesy Capt RN Gulati, Pune