Cases of voluntary retirement, suicides and fratricide among jawans in the armed and paramilitary forces are on the rise.
Between 2007 and 2011, 47,995 jawans from Central Paramilitary Forces (CPMF) have either resigned or sought retirement, and 20,640 jawans from Armed Forces (AF) did the same between 2007 and 2009.
That is not all. Between 2007 and November 2009, 448 personnel from the paramilitary forces have committed suicide, while 383 armed forces personnel committed suicide between 2007 and 2009.
Thirty six incidents of fratricide have been reported in the paramilitary forces. Twenty five similar cases have been reported from the armed forces between 2007 and 2011.
The above incidents are harsh reminders about the state of India’s security personnel. In fact, last December, two fratricides were reported in Kashmir. Three jawans of Central Research Police Force (CRPF) and one jawan of the Border Security Force (BSF) got killed in the latest episode of firing among colleagues at India’s paramilitary forces.
Security expert and professor at the New Delhi-based Center for Policy Research (CPR), Brahma Chellaney, says such numbers are disturbing. “If stress is the main cause behind such cases, it has to be resolved immediately,” he says.
Praful Bakshi, retired wing commander and defense analyst has an explanation. “The growing number of suicides and fratricides are a result of heavy workload and less leaves given to those in the armed forces.” Until November 2010, the armed forces reported a shortage of more than 15,000 officers. The paramilitary forces are short by 61,000 personnel.
Two recent studies conducted by the Defence Institute of Psychological Research (DIPR) and the Bureau of Public Research and Development (BPRD) pointed out the problems faced by people in the armed forces. Apart from excessive workload, the officers felt stressed due to prolonged duty hours, denial of leave, bad treatment by superiors and poor living conditions.
Dr JM Wadhawan, chairperson of the department of psychiatry at Sir Ganga Ram Hospital, New Delhi, suggests strict and regular monitoring of the jawans by a doctor for their anxiety levels. The unit’s commanding officer must be kept in the loop, he suggests.
Bakshi, on the other hand, feels that the administration of the armed forces needs to undergo a revamp, especially in the paramilitary forces.
“The deployment of paramilitary forces is operated by home ministry. It recruits an IPS officer to train jawans, but he is not the perfect person for the job. This bureaucratic process leads to resentment among the jawans,” he says.
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