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Vijay Mohan
Tribune News Service
Chandigarh, April 4
Over a year after it was launched, National Cadet Corps’ Fully Self-Financed Scheme for training additional cadets has been able to fill up only 44 per cent of the allocated vacancies as the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic played a dampener.
In December 2019, the Central government had approved one lakh additional vacancies in NCC Senior Division under the aforementioned scheme to boost the cadet strength and bring more educational institutes within its ambit.
Out of the one lakh vacancies, 44,000 have been filled till March 2021, even though thousands of institutes are on the wait list to introduce NCC. The low allotment has been attributed to the pandemic and the consequent restrictions and shutdowns imposed to mitigate its spread.
Under the scheme, the institutes availing the new vacancies are required to bear all the expenditure incurred on training, uniforms, equipment, transport, refreshments, NCC staff and the hiring of instructors.
The scheme commenced in 2020-21 as a pilot project. A private or quasi-government college on the waiting list having at least 500 students on its rolls could be allotted one company strength of about 150 cadets without any cost to the exchequer.
According to a government release in March, 8,902 educational institutes in the country, including 5,862 schools and 3,040 colleges, are currently on the wait list to introduce NCC. Already, NCC is available in 17,644 institutes.
In 2018, a performance audit, once in 2-3 years for schools and 3-4 years in colleges was introduced by the government. NCC is being withdrawn from non performing institutions and vacancies so freed are being allotted to institutes on the wait list.
NCC is largest uniformed youth organisation in the world with enrolled strength of 13.48 lakh cadets, out of which 33.72 per cent are girls. The Army Wing comprises for 84 per cent of the strength, with the balance being with the Navy and Air wings.
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