Strength under fire

Some weeks ago, a CISF jawan shot and killed his superior in a Mumbai airport. On Monday, a CRPF constable in Srinagar shot dead two of his ...

Some weeks ago, a CISF jawan shot and killed his superior in a Mumbai airport. On Monday, a CRPF constable in Srinagar shot dead two of his superiors before being gunned down himself.

The two incidents, coming as they do within a month of each other, raise serious concerns about the professional health of our major central armed police forces. What is common to them is the sense of grievance that the jawans had apparently harboured. The explanations for their conduct, as reported in the media 8212; of one being denied leave, and the other having drunk too much 8212; do not in any way explain these extreme acts.

Old veterans of the armed forces would dismiss these reasons as flimsy excuses for a deeper failure of discipline and training, and/or the lack of mental grit and emotional stability in the individuals concerned. Stress is intrinsic to the duties these men are expected to perform and aberrations, such as shooting down one8217;s superiors, reflect adversely on the professionalism of the concerned service.

These shootings no doubt represent stray and uncommon incidents in a large force; but they are also important pointers to the professional health of the force. The fragility of professionalism in this regard seems to be endorsed also by the fact that the guard on security duty in Srinagar was unable to use his rifle and had to shoot the errant jawan with his own rifle. There is a need to recognise the high levels of continuing stress to which we subject our security forces including the military and law enforcement agencies, in an environment of persistent and pervasive terrorism over the past two decades.

Few outside the services are probably aware of the pressures that emanate from facing risks to life emerging rapidly from unseen directions at any time of day or night, with weapons and equipment far inferior to those of the attackers.

Combating terrorism would take a long time and, hence, long-term solutions to minimise stress, whether by reducing the exposure of individuals and units to the task, or by other measures, are urgently needed.

At the more fundamental level, the force that bears arms, and is expected to operate under extremely demanding conditions where life itself could be at stake, must possess the ability to withstand that stress, at the time when it is the greatest, and needed the most. The jawans and officers of the central or state armed police of today have to possess qualities and mental strength/emotional stability to withstand the demands of their jobs, which is at a par with that of the defence forces.

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At the very minimum, the rigorous training of individuals selected for such a calling is crucial. And these individuals must be recruited carefully and scientifically, rather selected randomly to meet the obligations of political patronage.