The Additional Director General (ADG) in charge of the state has written to the Director General (DG) of NCC about the issue. The letter has also been sent to the Union Ministry of Defence.(Expres Photo By Amit Mehra/File/Representational purpose)THE NATIONAL Cadet Corps (NCC) has decided to cease enrollment of fresh candidates in West Bengal for 2022-23 fiscal as the state has allegedly paid less than what is required as budgetary support, an official said here.
Over 41,000 cadets who have been already enrolled in the NCC, a youth development movement managed by the armed forces which is open to all regular students of schools and colleges on a voluntary basis, will not be able to take part in annual camps, the official said.
The Additional Director General (ADG) in charge of the state has written to the Director General (DG) of NCC about the issue. The letter has also been sent to the Union Ministry of Defence.
In the letter, which was also sent to the state school education department, the NCC additional director general in charge of West Bengal and Sikkim directorate, Major General U S Sengupta, in a letter to the Director General of NCC said that despite “relentless efforts and correspondence at various levels” of the state government, the budget allocation to West Bengal NCC by the state government has remained unchanged.
“Enrollment of cadets in this training year is being ceased till additional funds as projected by this directorate to the state government are made available,” Sengupta wrote in the letter dated October 6.
Major B B Singh, the spokesperson for NCC’s West Bengal and Sikkim directorate here, said on Wednesday that the Bengal government has allocated Rs 80 lakh in 2022-23, while there is a requirement of another Rs 3 crore.
The total requirement is Rs 10 crore, including the infrastructure development of an academy at Kalyani in Nadia district, Singh said.
The careers of the cadets would be disadvantaged if they are unable to complete their training and examinations, the spokesperson said.
The NCC also provides exposure to cadets in a wide range of activities, with a distinct emphasis on social services, discipline and adventure training.
Maj Gen Sengupta pointed out in the letter that the total number of West Bengal cadets who were to undergo CATCs (combined annual training camp) is 54,324 in the current financial year.
While 6,586 cadets have already undergone CATCs out of these, another 6,400 can undergo CATCs with the remaining budgetary outlay, it said.
“The total number of WB cadets who will be left without a camp and thus rendering them ineligible for B and C certificate examinations (is)— 41,068,” the letter said.
Stating that another 103 camps would be required to cater to them, it said that 75 per cent of the enrolled candidates will not be able to undergo camps and hence will be ineligible for attending NCC B and C certificate camps.
Singh said that for the B certificate, a cadet has to attend one camp and for the C certificate he/she has to attend at least two camps.
BJP state president Sukanta Majumder tweeted the letter on Wednesday, saying, “CM @MamataOfficial is playing with the future of youths in WB. Her Govt refused to release funds for the NCC cadets aspiring for their B & C certificate examination. While she has no fund shortage for appeasement, she shows no concerns for youths.”
However, State Finance Minister Chandrima Bhattacharya denied these claims. She said, “We have already released the first tranche of Rs 20 lakh for this purpose on October 21. We are yet to receive the utilisation receipt from the NCC. We will release the next tranche as and when we get the receipt because that’s how the system works.”
Sources in NCC claim that they are trying to work out the matter with the finance department of the state government but have not received a green signal for funds.
— WITH PTI