Army goes for young blood in border areas

Right man for the right job to be the Army’s reform mantra

New Delhi, Feb. 25: The Army has started implementing reforms aimed at readying a larger talent pool for crucial tasks and bringing down the age of those commanding key formations including along the borders with China and Pakistan.

Top sources in the defence establishment said the idea behind the reform initiative was to bring down the age of commands at all levels and ensure deploying the “right person for the right job” in a timely manner.

“We also want longer tenures of brigade commanders, divisional commanders and core commanders,”

THE AIM of the initiative is to improve overall functioning of the Army in the wake of security threats at borders.

a top military official said, explaining the implementation of a new promotion policy as part of the overall reform initiative. The Army has begun putting the measures into effect.

The issue was discussed extensively at a meeting of top commanders of the Army last year when it was also decided that the organisation’s human resource policy would be reoriented.

“The aim of the initiative is to improve overall functioning of the Army,” the official said.

The sources said as part of the new promotion policy, selections for key assignments had been widened to encourage young officers and increase their motivation levels besides ensuring longer tenures at the level of command and director general. The world’s second largest standing Army has been bolstering its overall capabilities in the wake of evolving security threats including on India’s borders with Pakistan and China.