Indian Army Recruitment Rules Changed in Pursuit of Right Mix of Brain and Brawn

Bengaluru, February 22. The Indian Army has changed its recruitment process with an aim to get a right mix of brains and brawn into the force, an official said on Wednesday.

“The transformational changes announced by the Indian Army in the recruitment procedure of Junior Commissioned Officers (JCOs) and Other Ranks will lead to better focus on enhanced cognitive aspects during recruitment and will result in wider and better outreach across the country,” said Maj. Gen. P. Ramesh.

“Earlier we used to have a written examination at the end of the recruitment process, but it will now be the first thing to do so that the recruits are physically strong and brainy too,” Maj Gen P Ramesh, Additional Director General HQ Recruiting Zone, Bengaluru, told Media here, on February 22.

There is no change in the syllabus or the test pattern that will be used for the online common entrance examination (CEE), the first level of screening in the recruitment procedure for Agniveers.

During a media interaction held at Headquarters Recruiting Zone, in Bengaluru, he said the decision to go for an online examination format was driven by multiple factors, including that the youth are now very “technologically aware” and the proliferation of mobile phones and its penetration has gone deep into the villages, making new technology accessible to people.

He said the other tests – physical endurance and medical tests – will be held after the written examination.

The Army had recently announced a change in the Agniveer recruitment process and candidates wanting to join the force will now have to first appear for an online common entrance examination (CEE), followed by physical fitness and medical tests.

Maj. Gen. Ramesh said the other major change in the recruitment process has been that the aspirants will have to pay fees of Rs 500 to appear in the written examination.

“Out of this amount, the Indian Army will be bearing Rs. 250 while the candidate will have to pay only Rs 250,” he added.

The registration process for recruitment as Agniveer has started with the nationwide notification issued earlier this month. Online registration can be done only once in a year, Maj. Gen. Ramesh said.

According to the modified recruitment procedure, a computer-based online common entrance exam (CEE) will be conducted before the recruitment rally.

Online registrations for applications will be open till March 15 where candidates can apply as per their age, educational qualification, physical criteria and other qualification requirements.

The recruitment will be carried out in three stages:

• In stage one, all candidates who have registered and applied online on the website will undergo the CEE.
• In stage two, the shortlisted candidates will be called for a recruitment rally at a location decided by respective Army Recruitment Offices (AROs) where they will undergo physical fitness test and physical measurement test, the statement said.
• Finally in stage three, the selected candidates will undergo medical tests.

Online registrations for applications will be open till March 15 where candidates can apply as per their age, educational qualification, physical criteria and other qualification requirements.

Beware of touts

Maj. Gen. Ramesh also cautioned the candidates to not fall prey to touts as the process has become completely automated with minimal human intervention.

He added that last year there were around 40,000 vacancies across the country and that this year they are expecting around 40,000 to 45,000 vacancies and approximately 2,000 vacancies will come to Karnataka.

“The vacancies are released by the government at the moment they have not been released yet. In case the vacancies remain at 40,000 to 45,000 vacancies we can expect 2,000 vacancies for Karnataka,” he added.