6 min readJan 4, 2024 10:01 AM IST
First published on: Jan 4, 2024 at 07:00 AM IST
All is not well with the central armed police forces. The Government of India has been increasing their manpower (women power also now), giving them better equipment and resources and augmenting their annual budgets, but certain vital aspects of their functioning have not received the government’s adequate attention, and this is harming their discipline, morale and combat potential.
It would be difficult to cover all the points in this article. Here, I would specifically deal with the issue of selecting leaders for the top level. There appears a lot of adhocism in the process. The CRPF has today 246 battalions, BSF has 193 battalions, ITBP has 56 battalions, and the SSB has 73 battalions. The NSG is a small formation but it is a very specialised, elite unit. These are mega forces and require absolutely first class leaders who would lead from the front, inspire and motivate the personnel and look after their welfare. The government should frame guidelines for posting officers to the rank of Director General of these CAPFs. Thus, it could be laid down that unless an officer has served as DIG/ IG in the field for at least two years in any of the CAPFs or held charge of the armed police formation in the state for at least two years, he should not be considered for elevation to the Director General in any CAPF. There is a lot of resentment in the forces when officers with no experience in the CAPF are just para-dropped as head of that force. This has happened in the past and, unfortunately, is continuing even today.
Senior IB officers, who are not able to reach the top level in the organisation they have served for decades, are accommodated as directors general in one of the CAPFs. It is very unfair to the CAPFs to be saddled with an officer who has not worn the uniform for nearly three decades. The officer is at sea with the problems he faces and he does not command the loyalty or respect of the men he is expected to lead. The government’s concern for the rehabilitation of such officers is understandable. It would be better if they were accommodated in some ministry where they have to do desk jobs. CAPFs should not become a dumping ground for officers who could not reach the top in the organisation they worked in.
Another matter which has been causing heartburn among the senior officers is the delay in posting a successor to the top post after the retirement of an incumbent. There are numerous instances — a few examples should suffice. The post of DG BSF remained vacant after the retirement of VK Johri in 2020 and there was no regular incumbent for five months until Rakesh Asthana was posted. The SSB had no regular DG for five months after the transfer of SL Thaosen in 2022 until Rashmi Shukla was posted.
The Home Ministry seems to be under the impression that these top posts can be filled up in due course, that there is no harm if they remained unfilled for a couple of weeks or even months, that officers could be asked to hold additional charges and that the CAPF machine would work smoothly even then. Have you ever heard of the country being without its Army, Navy or Air Chief? These are fighting formations and are therefore always in a state of preparedness to deal with any emergency. The CAPFs are dealing with internal security problems and securing the international borders every day of the year. They should not be headless even for one day. The dates of retirement of all the officers are known. It only requires planning and timely decisions at the highest level.
Yet another factor affecting the performance of the CAPFs is their almost complete deployment around the year with the result that training is being neglected. One company in every battalion used to be earmarked for training purposes and it was not utilised under normal circumstances. However, the abnormal has become normal these days, partly because the state police are either incapable of handling their law and order problems or the state government prefers to abdicate its responsibility and insists on reinforcements from the Centre. Sometime back, the Centre increased the strength of every battalion by one company in some CAPFs with the assurance that it would be utilised strictly for training purposes, but over time, succumbing to pressures (or blackmail) from the state governments, even these companies were sucked in internal security duties. It would be no exaggeration to say that the professional level of some of the CAPFs is today comparable to that of the state battalions about one or two decades back. The standards are steadily falling.
There are multiple other problems. The BSF is our first line of defence against Pakistan. The ITBP is in the same position vis-à-vis China except in areas where the Army has moved forward in the face of attempted transgressions by our northern neighbour. The CRPF is overwhelmed with multiple internal security challenges all over the country. The responsibilities of the CISF are increasing every year. The SSB is deployed along the sensitive borders with Nepal and Bhutan. The NSG must retain its elitist character to be able to handle terrorist attacks in any part of the country. These forces must not be trifled with else we may have to pay a heavy price in the event of any grave threat to our security. The Centre would do well to appoint a Commission to go into the myriad problems of the CAPFs and suggest short-term and long-term measures to maintain their performance at a high level.
The writer is former Director General, BSF
There are multiple other problems. The BSF is our first line of defence against Pakistan. The ITBP is in the same position vis-à-vis China except in areas where the Army has moved forward in the face of attempted transgressions by our northern neighbour. 
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