By IANS
New Delhi : The Indian government has no immediate plans for conscription or compulsory military service, Minister of State for Defence M.M. Pallam Raju said Friday.
Talking to reporters on the sidelines of his visit to the National Cadet Corps (NCC) Republic Day camp, Raju denied that the government was seized of the issue at the moment in view of acute shortage of young men opting for military officers’ training through the combined defence services examinations.
According to Raju, the lack of funds was proving to be a hurdle in raising the strength of the NCC from the present 1.3 million to 1.5 million cadets.
He said the states would have to raise their contribution to the NCC while there are plans to seek the services of ex-servicemen for imparting training to implement the scheme.
Earlier, addressing the cadets, Raju said the NCC played a critical role in moulding and motivating the youth into responsible citizens and involving them in community campaigns.
Speaking on the occasion, NCC Director General Lt. Gen. Prakash S. Chaudhary, pointed out that the NCC cadets achieved distinction by bagging the second place next only to the Indian Army in the recent National Shooting Championships.