Over 9,000 paramilitary troopers quit this year

NEW DELHI - More than 9,000 paramilitary troopers have quit their jobs this year over a variety of reasons, including stress due to deployment in remote areas, parliament was told Tuesday.

The Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), which is fighting Maoist insurgents and is largely responsible for maintaining law and order in terror-riven Jammu and Kashmir, has suffered the highest attrition.

At least 3,522 CRPF personnel quit their jobs this year, Minister of State for Home Affairs Ajay Maken told the Lok Sabha in a written reply.

Next comes the Border Security Force, which had 3,000 personnel quitting their jobs. More than 1,400 Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) personnel too left the organisation.

In total, the attrition rate in central paramilitary forces was 9,036 up to June 30 this year, the minister said.

“The main reasons for attrition are superannuation, retirement, removal from service on account of disciplinary proceedings, death or disability, resignation and voluntary retirement. They also include family, personal or domestic problems, separation from family for long durations, difficult duties in remote or hard areas, sickness, mental depression, psychiatric and emotional cases,” Maken said.

Fear of punishment for wrong doings, attractive alternative employment and reduction of qualifying service for full pension after the Sixth Pay Commission are also reasons for the attrition.

Maken said the government had taken steps, including transparent leave policy, revamping of the grievance redressal machinery, provision of telephone facilities to troops, increased risk and hardship allowance, yoga classes for better stress and management, to prevent personnel from quitting the forces.

–Indo-Asian News Services