Sources said that the proposal to build the commando training centres has been cleared.
Maharashtra is all set to get one of the Railway Protection Force's (RPF) first commando training centres, with the railway ministry planning to upgrade RPF's Chink Hill facility near Solapur. According to officials, the proposal has been cleared and the money and infrastructural requirements, to ensure that the training centre becomes an elite commando training hub, are being readied.
Spread over a massive 118 acres, Chink Hill currently trains various ranks of RPF officers – from constabulary to inspectors – but there have been calls for long to upgrade it, said officials.
They added that the move comes as part of the railway ministry's endeavour to turn RPF – at present more of a guard force for railway property – into a proper combat force on the lines of the Border Security Force (BSF), the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) and the like. The RPF's combat capabilities will be upgraded to such a level that in case of a 26/11-type terror raid, it can stall or ward off the attacks till the arrival of specialised anti-terror units such as the National Security Guard (NSG) or the Navy's Marcos contingents.
Some of the most painful visuals of helplessness during the 26/11 terror raid were of RPF constables, armed with British vintage 303 rifles, trying to ward off terrorists at Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus (CST). Most rifles jammed, leaving constables with little choice but to duck for cover.
As per plan, a total of 22 commando units will be raised nationwide. Drawing from the current RPF personnel, another 12 commando companies will be raised from the Railway Protection Special Force, a specialised unit within the RPF umbrella.
RPF's journey towards a better armoury started in 2011, when a decision was taken to arm 15% of head constables and 10% of constables of the 70,000-strong force with AK-47 assault rifles, handed down by the Army. Mumbai's RPF units on Central and Western Railway were among the first to get these rifles in May 2011. This was apart from the 9mm pistols and INSAS and self-loading rifles that the force already has.
In mid-2013, the railway ministry took a decision to arm the force with the famed Heckler and Koch MP5 guns, a staple with several commando units worldwide, including the elite NSG.
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
 "Representational Image")
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
)
)
)
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}