Women to constitute 33 percent of constables in paramilitary

New Delhi: Women will soon account for 33 percent of constable-rank personnel in paramilitary CRPF and CISF and 15 percent in the border guarding forces BSF, SSB and
ITBP.

These forces together comprise of around nine lakh personnel of whom only around 20,000 are women now.

The 33 percent reservation in constable level posts in Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) and Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) and 14-15 percent posts in border
guarding forces of Border Security Force (BSF), Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB) and Indo Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) will start immediately.

"With a view to enhance representation of women in Central Armed Police Forces, Home Minister Rajnath Singh has approved 33 percent posts at constable level for being filled up by women," a Home Ministry statement said.

This reservation would be horizontal, it said. The move came following the recommendation of the Committee on Empowerment of Women in its sixth report which
had suggested urgent need to provide due representation to women in paramilitary forces.

The CRPF, considered to be the world's largest paramilitary force mostly deployed in law and order duties and the anti-Naxal operations, has just around 6,300 women in its
rank.

The parliamentary Standing Committee on Home Affairs has recently found that women personnel constitute only a little over nine percent of the Delhi Police force and asked the Home Ministry to ensure that their numbers are enhanced up to 33 percent.

"The committee notes that as on date, the representation of women in Delhi Police is 9.27 percent only. "However, on March 20, 2015, Government of India has approved reservation of 33 percent for women horizontally and in each category (SC, ST, OBC and others) in direct recruitment in non-gazetted posts from constable to sub-
inspector in the police forces of all Union Territories, including Delhi Police," the Committee observed.