Need to develop passion among youth for joining Armed forces

JAMMU: According to a school of thought, joining Armed forces is not a career option for most of the Indian youth now as very few young men opt for admission in NDA or IMA. Though many youth are seen taking part in the recruitment rallies for soldiers. There is a trend in modern youth to become engineer, doctor, scientist, sportsmen and others. And this is an alarming situation for our country. There may be various reasons for this. For some youth, the training period is very tough while as some parents may be reluctant because they don’t want to send their wards far away from them. On the other hand some parents feel pride in sending their wards to join army.
To know as to why youth today are not much interested in defense sector jobs, The News Now talked to some individuals to ascertain their views and opinion in this regard.
Jasbir Singh
It’s not that people are reluctant to join Armed forces, but there are other factors that are making this scenario bad. Firstly, as soon as students pass out from the college, most of them have a job in their hand. Thanks to the IT Sector and Multi-National Companies (MNC) that hire the staff in bulk. Once a student gets a job, he loses his focus and feels much satisfied and starts thinking that his search for job is over and he is well placed. Secondly, these companies offer a good salary and perks. Moreover, the youth is very much influenced by the life culture of Metro Cities like Gurgaon, Bangalore, and New Delhi etc, where they have highest chances of getting posted. In such a condition, they never think of going to armed forces.
Amrik Singh
Indian youth are not being motivated to join Armed forces despite being one of the most prestigious job profiles. If you see the life in Armed forces, it’s not hectic. In fact the life in private firms is much more hectic when compared to Armed forces. Who would not want people saluting him when he passes by? But these days, people don’t look beyond money. They take pride in talking about the death of soldiers but they don’t take an initiative to go out there and face what people have been facing since years to ensure that they sleep safely at home.
Sourav Sharma
Even though the salary of Armed forces has substantially increased from time to time through respective Pay Commissions, the youngsters still find them less as compared to the private sector. This consideration is put forth especially when one takes into account the life of a soldier which is tough and risky. However, national spirit must be kept high always and youth should also not ignore this sector (Armed forces) to make their careers.
Rahul Gandotra
The attraction of white collar jobs is a major deciding factor. Talented individuals are now keen for working in prominent firms or manager-level posts and wait to climb the ladder in the corporate world. But they don’t consider joining the Armed forces at the level of ordinary ranks, practicing due diligence and going through rigorous training to achieve the status of an officer. Moreover, Armed forces don’t select candidates based only on a written examination. Candidates are selected on the basis of their overall personality including intelligence, guts and dynamism. Today’s youth is not able to inculcate the qualities for an all-round development of their personality. As a result, Indian Army from time to time faces shortage of officers.
Vishal Sharma
Though the education sector has become competitive over a period of time, the theory-oriented curriculum with no scope for practical applications is hardly doing any good to the students. Lack of initiatives to involve students in contemporary social issues is making way for a generation that is disconnected from the realities of the country. Youth of today nurture a single idea of lucrative career that will give them maximum benefits. They should know that if there are risks and challenges in the Army, there is respect and job satisfaction also that no other career can offer. Keeping this in mind, the youth should consider the Armed forces as a career option and work towards grooming oneself to achieve that end.