Army Officer Cadre Management Model
`The Army has an authorized
strength of 46280 officers but it is 11238 short of that figure…”Main reason is
non-availability of sufficient number of suitable candidates meeting the
laid-down criteria for selection”, said a senior officer’[i].
Quality of available officers is one
of the critical factors in the efficiency or otherwise of any army. Officers
provide leadership to the troops and `brains’ to the planning process. Indian
Army like any other modern army has plethora of trades and specialties. As per
the data made available to Sixth Pay Commission, the army has more than 120
trades, which are bunched in 11 major arms/corps and nearly 15 minor corps. To
man leadership positions in these arms and services the Army commissions around
2200 officers through 16 different streams, with each having significantly
different terms of service. Consequently a situation prevails wherein officers
from arms retire two years earlier than those of services and so on. Such un-necessary and self-induced
complications impact on the morale of those who have more difficult working
environment. Hence it comes as no surprise that survey by a Television news
channel highlighted the fact that the army came 19th in choice of
careers for the youth pooled[ii].
The main reasons cited against joining the Army were poor pay and stunted
career prospects.
Over last 20 years the army has made
two major attempts to resolve the problems which have only resulted into a
bloated middle within the army and image problem without. But these attempts missed out on two
essentials, first they failed to identify underlying causes correctly and
secondly they never questioned the number and need of officers in the Army.
This paper attempts to look at underlying causes as also suggest some measures.
Environment
Scan
Past Attempts of Indian Army
to review officer cadre: AV Singh Committee
Army had attempted a review of its
officer cadre in 1984, which had resulted in raising the rank of Commanding
Officer from Lieutenant Colonel to Colonel but failed to achieve substantial
improvement in promotional chances of officers. Consequently it tried to adopt
similar cadre structure as civilian bureaucracy through AV Singh Committee.
Stated aims of this Committee were removal of officer shortage endemic to army
units, reducing age profile of commanding officer and improve promotion chances
of long-termers. These goals were sought to be achieved by restructuring the
officer cadre in a Regular to Short Service Commission Officer (SSCO) ratio of 1: 1.1 at the ranks of Lieutenant,
Captain and Major level. However actual ratio achieved is 2.6: 1
Effectiveness of AV Singh Committee
was predicted on success of SSCO scheme, which the
Ministry of Defence has been unwillingness or unable to achieve. The army adopting short
sighted approach to a systemic problem is making up SSCO shortfall by increasing
intake into regular cadre stream. Thus today more than 1400 officers[iii]
are getting commissioned against 900 vacancies while only 800 SSCO are
commissioned against 1000 vacancies. As
per extant terms of service a regular officer will retire at the age of 54
years after nearly 32 years of service and SSCO will serve for 14 years
and will be put to pasture at the age of 38 years without any financial
security or alternative job. Linear extrapolation these numbers combined with
the fact that officers are considered for promotion to the
rank of Colonel after 15 years of service and barely 25 per cent, that is
around 325 will be cleared for promotion out of more than 1300 and a massive
bulge will be formed by more than 14000 superseded Lieutenant Colonel at middle
level who will make up 33 per cent of total officer strength.
Those who get superseded will have to
be moved out of the units because in a hierarchical organisation like an
Infantry Battalion or Armoured Regiment where rank defines a particular level
of command and responsibility keeping an officer who is equal or senior to the
Commanding Officer is functionally disastrous. This means that various types of
headquarters and training institutions would be bursting at seams with
superseded officers while the numbers of officers employable in units will
remain as low as today.
Primary
Reason for failure of Government efforts. Primary reason for the failure of
reforms induced post - AV Singh Committee is flawed terms of service offered to
a SSCO. As against a regular officer who undergoes minimum one to
one-and-half year of training at Indian Military Academy, the SSCO is
only imparted nine months of pre-commission training. Following which he is
expected to operate with same level of competence as a regular officer. Second
he is expected to remain fully motivated despite knowing fully well that
irrespective of his performance, he will be put to pasture after 5 or 14 years as he
is hitting middle age.
Environment Scan: Successful Armies of the World
A study[iv]
of successful and unsuccessful armies of the past starting with the Roman Army
and including, German and Israel Army as also the unsuccessful ones like France
Italy and Finland brings out the
following.
•
Successful traits:
o
Armies
with lower ratio (1:33) of officer to enlisted had faster decision cycle.
o
Policies
built around unit manning.
o
Command
and instructor positions most prized, lasting from 3-5 years in key positions.
•
Unsuccessful traits:
o
Armies
with higher ratio (1:13 to 1:6) of officer to enlisted had slower decision cycle
at all levels.
o
Policies
were individual centric leading to lower unit success.
o
Officers
were rotated swiftly through many positions on average a new position every
10.1 months.
Attributes of an Ideal Officer Cadre for the Army
- · Be able to meet functional needs of particular arm or service.
- · Have distinct ranks corresponding to grade or level of hierarchy.
- · Induce healthy competition amongst peers.
- · Provide for smooth horizontal and vertical movement of members.
- · Fulfil legitimate expectations of its members.
- · Span of control of each appointment should not exceed three to five subordinates in case of combat and combat support units.
Proposed
Army Officer Cadre Management Model
Apparently there is a need to create a
well – balanced officer cadre for the Army which caters for both the
organisational and individual needs. Such a cadre ought to be structured after a
detailed study of various successful armies of the world and not on basis of
local civil service cadres. Implementation of the proposed officer cadre management
model will result in:
- · Strength of officers in a combat unit will rise to minimum 18.
- · Three year Long command tenures.
- · Uniform terms of service will result in rise of the meritorious.
- · Fair severance package will make short stint in the Army a sought-after option.
Selection
Need to nurture links with
Indian Society. While US and India are two different
Nation-States with distinct societies, but in matters-military there seems to
be fair amount of similarity. A seminal study on the American Military had long
back concluded that “The Armed Forces’ difficulty in attracting college
graduates as career officers will persist until a military career is made more
attractive in a highly competitive economy and until the American society
places a higher values upon the military profession.”[v].
In India too, the economically well-off
segment of the society at large respects individual acts of heroism by military
but shuns a career in military and to paraphrase Morris Janowitz “In
contrast to public acclaim accorded individual military heroes, officer-ship
will remain a relatively low-status profession.”[vi] Truth of this observation is reflected in the
fact that the recruitment base for both the officer cadets joining National Defence Academy (NDA) and others
joining as sepoys remain rural or semi-urban. This ghettoization of the Army
will prove counter-productive in the long run as it will create a mercenary
class of soldiers living in culturally sterile military stations with no links
to wider Indian Society, who are the ultimate owners of the Army.
To ensure that the officers of Army also represent the wider Indian
society, it is important that in addition to Catch-them-young Schemes like
NDA and Technical Entry Scheme (TES), the Government should
sponsor College Education of the meritorious volunteers who undertake to serve
in the Army for seven years as SSCO. Such volunteers ought to
make up 75 percent of total intake into Indian Military Academy (IMA) and its
sister Officer Training Academies (OTA). Balance 25 per cent, that is, 650 per
annum should come from in-house under-graduate programmes being run by the army
at NDA, TES, Army Cadet
College (ACC) and similar entries.
Entry Qualifications
·
Nationality.
Only Indian citizen by birth will be eligible.
·
Age.
Age at the time of commissioning ought to be between 22 and 24.
·
Physical
and medical standards. The present standards are adequate.
·
Proposed
Educational Profile at Intake Stage. To meet Army needs officers with
varied qualifications the Selection Boards will aim to achieve the following
profile of officer cadets.
Educational Qualification
|
Percentage
|
Approximate Number
|
Graduate
in Humanities
|
25
|
700
|
Graduate
in Science
|
25
|
700
|
Graduate
in Commerce
|
25
|
700
|
Graduate
in Law
|
2.5
|
70
|
Mechanical
Engineer
|
4
|
112
|
Electric
Engineer
|
3
|
84
|
Software
Engineer
|
3
|
84
|
Engineer
IT
|
2.5
|
70
|
Communication
Engineer
|
3
|
84
|
Civil
Engineer
|
6
|
168
|
Graduate
Architecture
|
1
|
28
|
Total
11 Major Specialities
|
100
|
2800
|
Table 1
Selection and Pre- IMA education Phase. Entry will be open to able
bodied men and women having passed 10 + 2 with at least 90 per cent marks or
having a position in first 10000 in prestigious All India Common Entrance Examinations
like JEE for applying and graduate at the time of commissioning. They will
undergo a three phase selection process.
·
Phase I(Talent
Hunt). Army will call upon the prospective candidates to enter into a
contract wherein the army will pay for fee and boarding of successful candidates
at either in-house training academies like NDA or in an institution of candidate’s
choice for a graduation course and the Candidates will undertake to serve for
seven years as SSCO with pay and allied benefits.
Phase 1 will commence when prospective candidates are
in XI Standard so as to ensure that SSB phase ends before start of Graduation
Studies. Hence Talent Hunt would be undertaken through an on-line test by UPSC
for the students who have cleared 10th Standard Examination from
recognised board with minimum 80 percent marks and first 20000 will be called for Phase II over next one year, that is while they are in XIth Standard.
·
Phase II
(Service Selection Board). Before putting the individual through any test,
his identity, citizenship and educational details would be verified immediately
on arrival at the SSB and then undergo a battery of medical, physical,
psychological and other tests to assess their suitability for commission. Finally a total of 3450 candidates would be shortlisted in keeping with percentages given in Table 1 and offered one of the following option for future education.
The offer will be valid only if the candidate maintains his performance in 12th Standard.
o
NDA. It will have an annual capacity of 300
candidates. Those who opt for NDA will undergo four yearlong graduation course in Humanities or Science along with concurrent basic military training.
o
TES.
It will have an annual capacity of 150 candidates. Those who opt for TES will
undergo four yearlong technical graduation course along with concurrent basic
military training.
o
Open
College Entry Scheme. It will have an annual capacity of 3000 candidates.
Those who opt for OCES will undergo four yearlong graduation course in law/
management/ technology at one of the prestigious school/ college in India. All
such candidates would have to join National Cadet Corps and undergo regular
military training in-location and at outdoor camps.
Final Merit List. Final merit list for the officers would be drawn
by the Army Headquarters based on comprehensive comparison of performance of
candidates received from respective academy or college and 2800 will be called
up for Pre-commission training at IMA.
Pre-Commissioning Training
For all types of entries pre-commissioning
training will be conducted at the IMA or on one of the campus of OTA. Duration
of training for a uniform period of one-and-half year with syllabus putting
greater emphasis on character qualities, social and inter-personal skills and
military history besides military skills and tactics.
Terms of Post Commissioning Service
There ought to be a common career
progression system, wherein approximately 2800 cadets from various entry
schemes are commissioned annually as Short Service Commission officers.
SSCO. All newly commissioned officers will be
granted SSCO for a period of seven years and they may apply for or be granted Interim
Regular Commission (IRC) after completing 7 years commissioned service as SSCO.
During this period they will be eligible to the ranks of Lieutenant, Captain
and Major. All SSCOs will be compulsorily employed with-in units at company/
equivalent level in major Combat Arms, Combat Support Arms and major services only and will be employed as tabulated below.
Rank
|
Service Bracket
|
Specific Employment
|
Lieutenant/ Captain
|
1st year
|
Young Officer Course
|
3 years
|
Company Second-in-Command or equivalent
|
|
Captain/ Major
|
Second half of 4th year
|
Junior Command Course
|
Two years
|
Company
Commander or equivalent
|
|
One Year
|
Company
Commander or equivalent
|
Embargo on employing SSCO. The SSCO will not be commissioned or employed in Minor Corps like, Army Aviation Corps (AAC), Army Ordnance Corps (AOC), Intelligence Corps, Army Education Corps (AEC), Corps of Military Police (CMP), Military Engineering Service (MES), Pioneer Corps, Judge Advocate General Branch (JAG) and on any kind of Staff including Personal Staff as Aide-de-Camp (ADC).
Making Short Service Attractive. To make severance attractive the following may be provided to SSCO:-
Making Short Service Attractive. To make severance attractive the following may be provided to SSCO:-
· Incentive by the Government of India.
·
Pay and
allowances of SSCO be exempt from income tax.
·
Allow
leave encashment (net of income tax) up to 300 days at annual maximum of 40
days for first six years and 60 days in seventh year of service.
·
Lump
sum grant (net of income tax) equal to seven of years pay calculated on last
pay drawn.
·
Provide
cost of hostel and tuition fee for a PG course in a Government or Government
aided Institute/college.
·
Provide
Ex-servicemen Contributory Health Scheme membership at a reasonable payment.
·
Provide
life-time Canteen Stores Department facilities.
Incentive by the Army.
Incentive by the Army.
·
Membership
in Defence Service Officers Institutes or similar institutions.
·
Membership
of Army Welfare Housing Organisation.
·
Membership
of Regimental Associations.
IRC Officer. Approximately 22 per cent of SSC
Officers, that is 620 would be granted IRC every year for a total commissioned service of 21 years that is 7 as SSCO and 14 years as IRC which will take them to
Immediate Pension Point (IPP). One-third of IRC officers, that is, 200 will be seconded to Minor Corps every year and 420 will serve with Major Arms and Services. All IRC officers will be eligible for
consideration for conversion to a Permanent Commission (PC) on completion of 21
years of commissioned service. During service as IRC they will be
employed as tabulated below.
Rank
|
Service Bracket
|
Broad Employment
|
Major
|
8th and 9th year
|
Two year Unit tenure
|
10th year
|
Staff College or equivalent course
|
|
11th to 13th year
|
Three year tenure of Staff or Instructor
|
|
Lieutenant Colonel
|
14th and 15th year
|
Two year tenure of Second-in-Command in unit or equivalent
|
Colonel
|
16th to 18th year
|
Three year tenure of Commanding Officer or equivalent
|
19th to 21st year
|
Three year tenure on Staff
|
PC Officer. Approximately 25 percent that is 160 IRC
officers will be granted PC annually, which will make the officer eligible to
be promoted to Brigadier and to serve for 33 years or up to the age of 56,
whichever is later. During this period he/ she will be eligible for the rank of
Brigadier, Major General, Lieutenant General and General. PC officers will hold
senior staff and instructional assignments and command formations.
Medical, Dental and
Veterinary Entry
Pre-commission Training. The officers in these streams would be
taken from Armed Forces Medical College and civil institutions at a rate of 250
per annum and will undergo 18 months of Pre-commission training at OTA, Gaya.
Terms of Service for the
Medical, Dental and Veterinary Officers. The terms of service for Medical, Dental and Veterinary officers will
be similar to General Duty Officers. Approximately 250 newly commissioned
medical, dental and veterinary officers will be annually granted SSC for a
period of 7 years and and will be employed as Regimental Medical
Officer or in Field Hospitals.
Approximately 22 per cent of IRC
Medical Officers, that is, approximately 50 would be granted IRC every year and
that will take them to the IPP. During service as IRC tehy will be employed in
various Military Hospitals and on medical staff and also undergo Post-Graduate
studies.
Approximately 25 percent, that is, 12 IRC Medical
Officers will be granted PC annually and will hold senior specialist and
instructional assignments in Military Hospitals and Armed Forces Medical
College as also staff.
Special List. In addition the Army will induct Special List
officers at annual rate of 200 from Army Cadet College. This entry will be
limited to serving soldiers. They will graduate from ACC and then undergo 18
months of Pre-commission training at OTA, Gaya. These officers will seve till
they attain 56 years of age.
Advantages of Proposed
Cadre
·
Provides attractive package to the meritorious that
can fund quality education in return for military service consisting of 18
months pre-commissioning training followed by 7 years’ service as SSCO.
·
Initial induction as SSCO, irrespective of type
of entry creates a level playing field for the best to win.
·
Makes severance after seven years attractive through
income tax relief and lump-sum grants.
·
Makes adequate number of motivated young
officers available in combat units.
·
By allowing multi-point exit option gives the
individual greater control over his career.
·
Removes
problem of supersession and its attendant ill-effects by providing honourable
and financially viable release.
o
SSCO will be released with best severance
package at around 30 years of age.
o
IRC will be released with liberal pension at the around 42 years of age or given option of permanent seconding to NCC, DRDO or similar organisations.
o
PC will serve till the age of around 56 years
and reach rank of Major General.
·
Reduces man-power cost by bringing down pension
liability.
·
Younger and better trained officers available in
units.
Conclusion
Over
last 20 years the army has made two major attempts to improve the officer cadre
management which have only resulted into a bloated middle within the army and
image problem without. This paper proposes a third solution, which is based on
a study of successful armies on the one hand and acknowledgement of individual
needs on the other.
[i] Army? Not officer’s
choice; Inadequate Salary in High-Risk Job Cited as Main Reason, Rajat
Pandit/TNN, Times of India
08 March 2007
[ii] Times Now Television survey telecast on 21 Nov 2007.
[iii] On 08
June 2013 An all time high of 74 foreign Gentlemen Cadets (FGC) passed out of
the Academy. Besides this, 631 new officers joined the Indian Army after
graduating ceremony. Read ore at http://indiatoday.intoday.in/story/foreign-nationals-pass-out-of-ima-new-officers-join-indian-army-india-today/1/279182.html
, similar numbers passed out in December. http://www.ssbcrack.com/2013/12/ima-passing-out-parade-14-dec-2013.html . On Saturday 14th December
2013, Indian military academy passing out parade took place. The POP
passing our parade was mesmerizing, 617 Indian army cadets and 71 foreign
cadets passed out of the Indian Military Academy (IMA). On the other
hand on 14 September 2013. The SSC 96 and SSC(W) 10
courses comprising 350 cadets including 70 lady cadets and 20 foreign cadets
from Afghanistan, passed out from the academy. http://www.forceindia.net/ServicenewsOctober20135.aspx In March 2013 a total of 284 cadets had passed out, bringing
annual total SSC Officers to 600 male and 100 lady cadets. In addition on 10
June 1013 37 Special Commission Officers were commissioned
into the Army while 91 cadets completed their Basic Military Training passed
out from OTA Gaya http://www.indiandefencereview.com/media/third-batch-of-officers-commission/ and 28 Gentleman Cadets of
Special Commissioned Officers (SCO) Course Serial- 31 got commissioned into
various regiments of Indian Army as Officers. Whereas 12 Gentlemen Cadets (GC)
went into various units of Assam Rifles and 132 Gentleman Cadets of Technical
Entry Scheme (TES) Course Serial – 28 passed out from OTA, Gaya in Dec 2013.
[v] Soldiers and Scholars: Military Education and National Policy by
Masland’s and Lawrence I. Radway 1959
[vi] The Professional Soldier, Morris Janowitz, 1960.
posted by Yogi at 9:36 PM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home