There comes a time when one has to decide on a career that will not only bring monetary gains but also job satisfaction and the inspiration to achieve more. In recent years, the youth has been staying away from mainstream career options like engineer and doctor. Aspirations of career seekers have undergone a paradigm shift with most of them looking to establish oneself in not-so-common sectors like animation, fashion designing, etc. In such a scenario, one cannot but ask whether the Armed Forces is one of the choices of the generation next.
Why Armed Forces is Not an Appealing Career Option?
- There is a school of thought which suggests that the armed forces is no longer appealing as a career. Following factors are cited to substantiate the claim:
- There is a general belief that the cultural moorings of the Armed Forces are disconnected from modern India’s social and cultural ethos.
- To expect the generation next to choose this vocation, and stick to it, the profession has to be made attractive. Here, the pay structure of the Armed Forces is another deciding factor. Even with the Sixth Pay Commission, the remuneration does not do justice to the risk factor, the long periods of separation from the family, the undefined and ungodly hours and pathetic living conditions in forward areas.
- The officers who join the Armed Forces are highly motivated, intelligent and hardworking individuals. But the pyramid structure of the Indian Army sometimes filters out the more deserving officers. With no scope for promotion, these officers feel stagnated. They cannot explore the option of selling their skillsets in the civil sector.
Getting Into Armed Forces Requires a Holistic Personality
However, even with the aforesaid factors been taken into consideration, the statistics show a completely different state of affairs. As per the Application to Post Ratio (APR), the applications received for the ordinary rank and the officer’s rank have improved in the recent years. However, the ratio of the number of applicants selected is very low. The Armed Forces does not select candidates based only on a written examination. That is just one of the initial criteria. Candidates are selected on the basis of their overall personality, including intelligence, guts and dynamism. Today’s youth is not able to inculcate the qualities essential for an all-round development of their personality.
Factors Affecting Personality Development of Students
- Erstwhile families were large, where the qualities of inter-personal relationships, leadership, and resourcefulness were instilled in an individual at a very young age. The trend of nuclear families does not give youth enough scope to imbibe these qualities. Parents are not helping their children’s cause by being overprotective and not allowing them to think and act indepedently.
- The education system should also take a portion of the blame. Though academic sector has become competitive over a period of time, the theory-heavy curriculum with no scope for practical application is hardly doing any good to the students. Lack of initiatives to involve students in contemporary social issues is making way for a generation that is disconnected from the realities of the country. Youths, nowadays, nurture a single idea – lucrative career that will give maximum returns.
- The attraction of the white-collar jobs is another deciding factor. Talented individuals are now more keen on working in prominent MNCs as a coder or an analyst and waits to climb the ladder in the corporate world. But they do not consider joining the armed forces at the level of ordinary ranks, practicing due diligence, and going through the rigours to achieve the status of an officer. It is a regressive mindset that stops youths from trying their luck in armed forces.
Today’s youth should know that Armed Forces is not just a job; it is a way of life. If risks and challenges are a part of it, so are respect and job satisfaction that no other career can offer. Keeping this in mind, the youth should consider the Armed Forces as a career option and work towards grooming oneself to achieve that end. They ought to be reminded that serving the armed forces is a matter of honour and pride. It is one of the noble professions that teaches an individual how to face adversities and rise up to challenges.
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