Delhi HC orders cadre restructuring in BSF in 4 weeks

No restructuring has been carried out in past 25 years Last cadre restructuring for the 2.5-lakh personnel strong force was carried out in 1991

The Delhi High Court yesterday directed paramilitary Border Security Force (BSF), in the presence of its chief, to implement the much-delayed cadre restructuring exercise for the officers of the force within the next four weeks.

Order in this regard was passed by a bench of Justices Indira Banerjee and V Kameswar Rao, saying the exercise, not carried out for nearly 25 years, be completed without any further delay.

The court, which was miffed at the delay in implementation of its orders in this regard, had summoned the BSF chief to be present during the hearing following which the Director General of country's largest border guarding force K K Sharma and a battery of senior officials, attended the proceedings.

"The high court has given the force the last and final opportunity to implement cadre restructuring in BSF," advocate Jyoti Singh, representing a group of BSF officers who had moved the court last year, said.

The petitioners had said the last cadre restructuring for the 2.5-lakh personnel strong force was carried out in 1991, and it was getting delayed for the last few years owing to various reasons leading to grievances and stagnation in the promotion of class 'A' officers of its cadre.

A cadre restructuring is conducted to improve the workforce in an organisation in light of changing scenario over a period of time, and it is aimed at enhancing the morale of the men and women employees and also getting better work productivity from them in the interest of the organisation.

They said after the BSF restructuring is cleared by the government, the force will have a net increase of 74 posts, from Additional Director General to Assistant Commandant ranks, and that is expected to ease the promotional aspect with regard to officers in the force, primarily tasked to guard the two most-sensitive borders with Pakistan and Bangladesh.

The entire exercise, they said, will be "cost neutral" as almost 330 posts will be abolished in lieu of getting the new 74 posts.

"While this much-delayed exercise will act to provide only some succour to the officers facing stagnation in promotion in the force, it being implemented after 25 years has come as a positive development," a senior official said.

Apart from being the 'first line of defence' along Pakistan and Bangladesh borders, BSF, under the command of the Union Home Ministry, is extensively deployed to conduct anti-Naxal operations in Left Wing Extremist-hit states of Chhattisgarh and Odisha, apart from rendering a variety of internal security tasks.