Rajendra Kumar, a 35-year-old former Assistant Commandant with a storied career in Elite Anti Naxal CoBRA unit and the National Security Guard (NSG), reluctantly bid farewell to his uniform this year.
To Kumar, that uniform was like second skin, and letting it go was deeply emotional and painful. His departure from his dream job came with a heavy heart as he felt he did not receive the recognition and rewards he had hoped for, leaving him with a profound sense of disappointment.
Kumar is not alone. Various Gallantry medals winners, who eliminated terrorists and Naxals, are making an exit from CRPF. Data exclusively accessed by News18 shows that there has been a rise of almost 250 per cent in cases of voluntary retirements from the force in the past three years.
Data says every day, in the past three years, seven persons or officers took voluntary retirement from the force.
Many of them are young officers who are leaving the post in the world’s largest paramilitary while more are thinking of choosing the same path.
According to the data accessed by News18, 7,840 officers have taken VRS since 2020 till 2022. Importantly, 2021 and 2022 have seen a massive jump from 1,320 in 2020 to 3,501 and 3,019 respectively. A senior CRPF official also said that in the past five years, the figure never crossed 3,000 but, in the last two years, the cases of VRS have crossed the figure.
The data revealed that while the force is struggling with a number of suicides, stagnation is the biggest issue triggering officers and jawans to voluntary retire even if they have no job of their choice in hand.
Though there is no detailed study by the government on the issue, an analysis carried out by the forces indicates that personal and domestic reasons are the biggest factor behind the move. Children/family issues, health issues of self or family members, social/family obligations and commitments, better career opportunities are some of the major reasons for voluntary retirement/resignation, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) had said in a reply in Parliament.
Officers who left the job point out several issues that need to be addressed immediately to control the exodus from the force which is struggling to get young commanders.
According to Kumar, the biggest factor is stagnation in the force and almost nil promotion. “When I joined the force, I was told by the then serving officers that I will get promotion, a good environment and support. But soon I found out that I will be at the same designation for almost 20 years and possibly get just one promotion. I served in CoBRA and NSG but finally decided to quit as I found no point of continuing,” he told News18.
Kumar is now about to start a new journey — a start-up venture. Asked about NSG, he said had it been a permanent deployment in the elite force, he would have continued but since it’s a deputation force, he decided to quit.
Rajbardhan Singh, a two-time PMG awardee, made the difficult decision of leaving the force for a deeply personal reason. He explains to News18 that the constant demands of his job were taking a heavy toll on his family, causing them significant distress.
Despite neglecting his physical well-being to prioritise his duty, Singh eventually realised that the path was leading to the end of his career. He faced the challenge of providing for his family but found compelling reasons to step away from his role as an officer.
“Just like other officers, I cleared UPSC with a dream that we will serve the nation and have a good life too. But once I joined the force, I found that the reality was different. The facilities we used to get, especially in tough areas, were nothing. My health was deteriorating but I decided to keep moving on. Finally, after almost 7-8 years, I was convinced that it was time to leave my job as an officer. The reasons were related to my family and personal wellbeing which were furthered triggered by the lack of facilities and respect we received in reality,” the officer told News18.
According to the top-level officials, the force is looking into the issue and a solution is expected soon. The Union Home Ministry in March had asked all paramilitary forces to give “practical suggestions” on finding a solution to remove stagnation at various levels caused by stalled promotions.
“The home ministry has decided to ascertain the actual reason to plug the gaps. Further directed to review the present status and give practical suggestions to improve the situation,” the communication says.
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