Armed forces recruitment exam in 13 regional languages, says MHA
The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) on Sunday announced that it will conduct the Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF) constable (general duty) examination in 13 regional languages, in addition to Hindi and English. The exam is scheduled from February 20 to March 7, 2024. It will be held across 128 cities, with around 48 lakh candidates participating. The initiative aims to increase the participation of local youth in CAPFs and promote regional languages, the MHA said.
Decision taken under PM Modi, Home Minister Amit Shah's guidance
The MHA decided to implement the major change starting January 1, 2024, under Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah's guidance. This move is expected to provide equal employment opportunities and encourage more local youth to join the central armed forces. The CAPFs include the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), Border Security Force (BSF), Central Industrial Security Force (CISF), Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP), Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB), and the National Security Guard (NSG).
Which regional languages are included in examination
Along with Hindu and English languages, the constable (general duty) examination question papers will now be available in 13 other languages. These include Assamese, Bengali, Gujarati, Marathi, Malayalam, Kannada, Tamil, Telugu, Odia, Urdu, Punjabi, Manipuri, and Konkani. The Staff Selection Commission (SSC), responsible for conducting the exam, has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the MHA to facilitate this change and issued a notification for the same.
Impact on youth participation, career opportunities
The MHA said the central government's initiative would enable lakhs of Indian youth to take the CAPF constable examination in their mother tongue or regional language. As a result, the exam's reach will likely expand, and candidates will have better chances of selection. The ministry termed it a "golden opportunity" for youth to build a career in the armed forces and serve the nation by participating in the examination conducted by the SSC.
Demand from states to include local languages in forces' exams
There has been growing demand from various southern states and regional political parties to include local languages in the forces' recruitment exams. Last year, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin wrote a letter to Shah, urging him to include Tamil as one of the languages for the written exam in the recruitment of CRPF personnel. He also alleged discrimination against non-Hindi-speaking states during the examination process.
