Defence

 NATIONAL CADET CORPS

  • The National Cadet Corps (NCC) was established under the NCC Act, 1948. It has completed 64 years of existence.
  • The NCC strives to provide the youth of the country opportunities for all round development. The motto of NCC is “Unity and Discipline“.
  • The total sanctioned strength of NCC cadets is 15 lakh. NCC’s presence extends to 642 districts of the country covering 15,749 institutions.
  • From the current year, the enrolment policy of senior division/ senior wing cadets has been changed from 2 years to 3 years. NCC has been made an additional/elective subject in class X and XII from the current year.

TRAINING FOR DEFENCE SERVICES

  1. SAINIK SCHOOLS: These were established as a joint venture of the Central and state governments. These are under the overall governance of Sainik Schools Society. At present, there are 24 Sainik Schools located in various parts of the country. Sainik School at Rewari (Haryana) is the latest one started in March 2009.
  2. RASHTRIYA MILITARY SCHOOLS: There are 5 Rashtriya Military Schools in the country at Belgaum and Bengaluru in Karnataka, Chail in Himachal Pradesh and Ajmer and Dholpur in Rajasthan. These schools are affiliated to CBSE. Boys are admitted in Class VI based on the results of an all India Common Entrance Test.
  3. NATIONAL DEFENCE ACADEMY: NDA is a premier Tri-Service institution which trains cadets of all three Services before inducting them into their respective pre commissioning training academies. The intake capacity of NDA was recently enhanced from 1800 cadets to 1920 cadets. The three years course at the NDA is covered in six semesters and cadets are awarded with BA/BSc Degree. Thereafter, on conclusion of this training, the cadets proceed to their respective Service Academics for further training before being commissioned as officer in the Armed Forces.
  4. RASHTRIYA INDIAN MILITARY COLLEGE: It was founded on March 13, 1922, with the objective of providing the necessary preliminary training for boys wishing to become officers in the Armed Forces of India. The institution now serves as a feeder institute to the National Defence Academy.
  5. INDIAN MILITARY ACADEMY, DEHRADUN: It is a premier training establishment imparting pre-commissioned training to the Gentlemen Cadets (GC). Interaction with foreign military academies through cadets exchange programme has been the highlight of the training year wherein selected gentlemen cadets visited France, Australia, UK and Singapore military academies.
  6. OFFICERS TRAINING ACADEMY, CHENNAI: Established in 1963, the Officers Training School (OTS) was re-designated as Officers Training Academy (OTA) from January 1, 1988 on completion of 25 years of its existence. Its main task, before 1965 was to train Gentlemen Cadets for grant of Emergency Commission. From 1965 onwards, the Academy trains cadets for Short Service Commission. With the entry of women officers in the Army since 1992, around 100 lady officers now get commissioned from OTA every year in Army. The Academy celebrated its Golden Jubilee in March, 2013.
  7. OFFICERS TRAINING ACADEMY, GAYA: The Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS), in 2009 approved setting up of second Officers Training Academy (OTA), Gaya. The Academy was commissioned in 2011.
  8. COLLEGE OF MILITARY ENGINEERING, PUNE: It is a premier technical institution conducting training for personnel of the Corps of Engineers, other Arms and Services, Navy, Air Force, Para Military Forces, Police and Civilians. Besides, personnel from friendly foreign countries are also trained. CME is affiliated to Jawaharlal Nehru University GNU) for the award of B.Tech.
  9. NATIONAL DEFENCE COLLEGE: Selected Armed Forces officers of the rank of Brigadier/equivalent and Civil Services officers of equivalent status of Director and above are nominated for training at the college. The officers undergo an 11-month programme with focus on National Security, covering all dimensions of domestic, regional and international issues.
  10. COLLEGE OF DEFENCE MANAGEMENT: CDM is an Armed Forces Training Institution (AFTI) which came into being three decades ago. It is entrusted with the responsibility of instilling contemporary management thoughts, concepts and practices in the senior leadership of the Armed Forces. Osmania University recognizes the core course of CDM, namely the Higher Defence Management Course for the award of the Master of Management Studies (MMS) degree.
  11. DEFENCE SERVICES STAFF COLLEGE (DSSC): The DSSC is one of the oldest military institutions in India. The DSSC imparts training to middle level officers of the three Services besides a few civilian officers and officers from friendly foreign countries. The college conducts a 45-week training programme from June to April every year. After successful completion of the course they are awarded with M Sc. Degree from Madras University.
UPSC Prelims 2025 Notes