Essay on Should service in the armed forces be made compulsory for the youth for a specified period? for Class 12, Mains Exam (UPSC, PSC, SSC)
Should service in the armed forces be made compulsory for the youth for a specified period? Essay : The question of youth being enlisted in the armed forces has been answered ambiguously. Much of the contradictions are based on the philosophical and ideological proclivities of the Nation. After World War II many European countries witnessed the emergence of national athletes such as Sir Robert Charlton or as people fondly called him Bobby Charlton donning the Royal Army Ordnance Corps as he served in the armed forces in the 1960s. Following the footsteps of the European tradition of military recruitment, Asian countries like South Korea have enlisted young athletes like Heung-min-Son into the military in 2018 and Mohammed Salah served in the Egyptian army as the nation’s policy of compulsory national services. In India, compulsory service in armed service is rejected as it is against the principles of Democracy.
Discussion
The Indian Armed Forces, with 1.4 million personnel holds the rank of the second largest military force in the world. The Indian constitution does not encode any conscription laws, i.e policies stating military services to be compulsory for citizens, making services in the armed forces a subject of voluntary involvement. However, Article 23 of the Indian constitution encodes a clause permitting the central government to conscript civilians for the nation’s interest of internal security.
The call for urgent recruitment in the army emerged in 2008 when statistics proved that there was a decrease in the number of personnel enlistments, specifically those who were eligible to be promoted to officer status. The Agnipath scheme was initiated on 14 June 2022 to look for novel methods to motivate and encourage civilians to take part in the recruitment process.
Since independence, India had provisions for mandatory military training in government and government-aided schools despite the absence of any provisions compelling civilians to be recruited into the armed forces. The National Cadet Corps (NCC) was founded in 1948 to encourage the youth population to join military services.
The Chinese insurgency threats in 1962, compelled the union administration to make provisions to make military training in all colleges for both men and women during summer holidays compulsory. The training involved everything from learning to use weapons and ammunition to make strategies and communication. The provision was continued during the Pakistan war in 1965 till it was abolished in the early 1970s.
The contradictory point of view regarding the recruitment mechanism of the Indian Armed forces has continued since independence. After extensive and elaborate discussions, no conclusion has been reached.
The proponents of compulsory recruitment in the armed forces state that:
i) Conscription for mandatory military training would result in holistic character and personality development leading to a more disciplined society. Motivation serves in the armed forces would lead to the inculcation of patriotism and instil a sense of nationalism that can be witnessed in countries like Singapore and China.
ii) Another aspect pointed out by the proponents of compulsory conscription is that a country like India which shelters diversity like no other country in the world would only have a positive result of establishing a sense of togetherness which will, in turn, facilitate cohesion and unification of the country.
Opponents of compulsory conscriptions have suggested that:
i) A voluntary process of recruitment for armed services for the nation will assist in building a more dedicated cadre of officers in contradiction to compulsory conscription of civilians which may lead to disillusionment of the entire defence system leading to defiance from civilians resulting in internal conflicts.
ii) Mandatory military training is completely incongruent with the principles of democracy. The largest democracy in the world, India is not capable of compelling its civilian to participate in military services for a legitimate democracy means a government by the people, for the people and of the people.
Conclusion
To conclude, India cannot emulate her western counterparts like the United States of America or the United Kingdom in the process of recruiting men and women in the armed forces for the principles of democracy dictate against the recruitment without their personal will. Despite, the absence of compulsory conscription, India has managed to be a prominent military prowess.
FAQs
Q1. Which athletes have served in their nation’s military?
Ans: After World War II many European countries witnessed the emergence of national athletes such as Sir Robert Charlton or as people fondly called him Bobby Charlton donning the Royal Army Ordnance Corps as he served in the armed forces in the 1960s. Following the footsteps of the European tradition of military recruitment, Asian countries like South Korea have enlisted young athletes like Heung-min-Son into the military in 2018 and Mohammed Salah served in the Egyptian army as the nation’s policy of compulsory national services.
Q2. Which provision of the Indian constitution can compel civilians to be recruited in the military?
Ans: The Indian constitution does not encode any conscription laws, i.e policies stating military services to be compulsory for citizens, making services in the armed forces a subject of voluntary involvement. However, Article 23 of the Indian constitution encodes a clause permitting the central government to conscript civilians for the nation’s interest of internal security.
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