Mumbai, Oct 5 (IANS): The National Cadet Corps (NCC) in Maharashtra is grappling with an acute shortage of staff and inadequate training infrastructure, with nearly 40-50 units affected and around 20-25 units facing the prospect of temporarily suspending camps and training activities, Additional Director General (ADG) NCC Maharashtra Major General Vivek Tyagi has said.
In an exclusive interview with IANS, Maj Gen Tyagi said the organisation has been forced to operate through ad hoc arrangements, affecting the quality and uniformity of training imparted to cadets.
“Ideally, there should be a group headquarters or academy for every NCC group, but that is not the case at present. Training infrastructure remains a major challenge. We have to approach schools and colleges and request them to provide facilities on an ad hoc basis. Such arrangements dilute training standards, which is not acceptable because we want to provide training in accordance with prescribed benchmarks,” he said.
The senior officer said the issue has been taken up with the Maharashtra government.
“We have highlighted the matter to the state government. It now needs to come forward with proposals regarding the allocation of land and other assets, as these fall under the state’s responsibility,” he said.
Highlighting the staffing crisis, Maj Gen Tyagi said NCC functions under a Centre-State partnership model, wherein staffing of groups and units is the responsibility of the state government.
“Regular recruitment has not taken place for several years. Many vacancies are being managed through outsourcing and temporary appointments. This model creates significant operational difficulties. Every eight to ten months, sanctions for these positions lapse, and senior Armed Forces officers have to pursue extensions through various government departments, including the CSYS office and Mantralaya,” he said.
The situation has become more critical following the expiry of a key staffing sanction on September 30.
“One sanction expired on September 30, and we are still awaiting clarity on how the nearly 40-50 affected units are expected to function without an extension. If approval is not received within the next two to three days, we may be compelled to temporarily suspend camps and training activities in around 20-25 units,” he warned.
He added that the absence of essential administrative support staff could severely hamper daily operations.
“If basic office work, accounting, finance and documentation cannot be handled, it becomes extremely difficult to run camps and training programmes in the current environment,” he said.
Maj Gen Tyagi further noted that NCC expansion plans have already been stalled in several parts of Maharashtra, including Pune, an issue that had earlier been highlighted by the Director General, NCC, during a visit to the city.
