Context
The Department of Military Affairs is moving towards finalising the “Tour of Duty (ToD)” scheme.
What is a Tour of Duty?
- It means hiring a youth in the armed forces for a short span of 3-5 years.
- The idea of hiring jawans on a three-year contract was first floated in 2020.
- The idea was the brainchild of late Chief of Defence Staff, General Bipin Rawat.
- The Indian Army will be the first of the three armed forces to recruit some soldiers for a fixed period of three years.
- Around 25% of them would serve in the Army for three years and 25% troops would serve for five years.
- The remaining 50% would continue to serve in the Army for the full term till they reach their retirement age.
- Proposal states that 50% of soldiers released at the end of three and five years will be included in the National Pension Scheme.
- Such soldiers will be given certain medical benefits, applicable to Armed Forces veterans, for a fixed period.
Background
- It started during World War II when the British realized that they needed far more officers than those who could be commissioned from either Sandhurst or the JSW (Joint Services Wing).
- These officers came on a contract for five-10 years and could be later converted to a permanent commission.
- This was done till the end of World War II.
- In 1962 during the Indo-China War, the Emergency Commission was reopened and based on the increasing requirement of the officers, Officers Training School (OTS) in Chennai was opened, which granted short-service commissions to five-10 years.
Models for recruitment
- The Army is considering two different models for recruitment in the future:
- One under which youth can voluntarily serve in the Army for a temporary period of three years.
- The other where they are recruited by Central Armed Police Forces (CAPFs), trained and posted in the Army for about seven years, before being transferred back.
- The first model, of three years’ service, is called ‘Tour of Duty’, while the other is called ‘Inverse Induction’.
- Currently, the only option apart from regular permanent commission into the armed forces is the short service commission, in which officers are recruited for a period of 14 years.
Significance
- The soldiers would be given a payout along with priority in recruitment to certain government jobs, including the central armed police forces.
- An effort is also on to nudge corporate India into hiring such ex-ToD recruits for specific lines of work in the private sector on a priority basis.
- ‘Tour of Duty’, will help not only resolve the issue of shortages of personnel but also reduce the burden of pay rises and pensions.
- As per the original ToD proposal, the “prospective life-term saving” in the cost of engagement of a single jawan who leaves after 17 years of service with pension and other benefits, as compared to a ToD jawan will be Rs 11.5 crore.
- The cumulative money saved in pay and gratuity payouts can consequently be used for the much-needed military modernization.
