The Indian Structure Of Defence Entrance Exams In The Past Few Years
Shishir Dixit, Founder & Director at Centurion Education Pvt.Ltd. and SSB Expert. He is a Best Psychologists, Mentor and Motivational Speaker in Lucknow, India.
Changes in Exam Structure over the Years
1. Shift from Offline to Online Mode
Like every other examination — college entrance exam or government job, most of the defence exams have also adopted online mode of examination in the past few years. The switch has been rapid due to the increasing proliferation of and easy access to the internet and connected devices. For example, exams like MNS and Air Force Group X and Group Y are now conducted online. Even a few exams that are being conducted in offline mode are expected to adopt the digital mode sooner, for example, NDA by UPSC.
2. Increasing Inclination
Over the years, the number of youngsters applying for a defence entrance examination has drastically increased whereas the number of vacancies continues to be in the same range. It may be because of the increasing awareness, literacy or affordable internet. According to the National Defence Academy and Naval Academy Examination 2020, the approximate number of seats to be filled is 413. Further, in the first exam of 2019, there were 4.62 lakh applications. This is a drastic increase from 2009-I when the number of applicants were 2.77 lakh and 2012-I when 3.57 lakh candidates applied. The increasing aspiration and inclination of millenials towards defence have increased the competition.
3. COVID-19 Impact
In the wake of the pandemic, various centre and state government exams got postponed, drastically affecting the aspiring students. While some have been re-scheduled, many have been either put on hold or their number of seats has been cut down. Moreover, forms of many exams are long awaited by candidates. However, the defence is perhaps the only domain of government exams which continue to be scheduled on time.
4. Network Centric Warfare
Network-centric warfare is a military doctrine that seeks to translate an information advantage into a competitive advantage through the robust computer networking of geographically dispersed forces. As the government is consistently indulged in incorporating technology into defence, reforming the system to take our capacity to next level, the requirement of candidates with technical skills has increased and will keep rising in future. There are positions for which there is a direct entry for B.Tech graduates and likewise.
5. Permanent Commission to Women Officers
In a landmark judgement, the Supreme Court of India in February directed the Indian Army that all serving women officers recruited under SSC will have to be considered for permanent commission. Before the judgment, the Army offered the permanent commission to women officers in two fields — education and judge advocate general (JAG).
Summing Up!
As the opportunities across a number of defence exams are likely to grow over the coming years, it will become more competitive to get into the armed forces. However, the one who is determined, focused and consistently passionate will surely make it to their target.
Tags assigned to this article:
Combined Defence Services (CDS) Defence Entrance Exams Indian Armed Forces(IAF) general knowledge AFCAT exam Engineering Knowledge Test government
VISIT: http://www.shishirdixit.com
