Paramilitary forces to use CCTVs, RFID tags to recruit jawans

New Delhi: The recruitment procedure for jawans and other junior-rank officials in central paramilitary forces of the country is set for a change as the Union Home Ministry has decided to usher transparency in the process by using gadgets like CCTV cameras and RFID tags.

The Ministry, which plans to recruit thousands of men and women in the ranks of Constables, Sub-Inspectors and Inspectors in the five large Central Armed Police Forces (CAPFs) -- CRPF, BSF, CISF, ITBP and SSB in the coming years, will take help of OMR sheets, RFID (Radio frequency identification) tags and CCTVs to electronically log every minute parameter of an individual who aspires to join the internal security duties being rendered by these forces. According to a proposal prepared and approved by a joint panel of paramilitary forces, a revamp in the recruitment procedure is being done and it will be called Transparent Recruitment Procedure (TRP). Till now, the recruitment process work in these forces, which involves logging of details and other vital parameters of candidates, was done manually by trained officials of these forces. "The forces recruit thousands of candidates every year owing to the increasing responsibilities in the internal security domain. These new technology-based upgrades are not only aimed at reducing instances of corruption in the recruitment process but also to choose the best talent by making use of technology," a senior paramilitary official told PTI. While Optical Mark Readers and Optical Character Recognition (OCR) technology will be used for all application forms that are invited, standardised digital health and weight devices with digital monitors for display to the candidate will be procured by these forces and deployed during recruitment rallies.