Participation of girls on the rise in NCC, says DG

New Delhi: Participation of girl cadets in the National Cadet Corps (NCC) has more than doubled in the last one decade, DG NCC Lieutenant General Gurbirpal Singh said on Friday.

As NCC cadets from all over the country gathered in the national capital for the annual Republic Day camp, the DG NCC gave an overview of the activities undertaken by the cadets across the country, including in the Puneet Sagar Abhiyan under which more than 200 tonnes of plastic waste has been collected from different water bodies.

"The participation of girl cadets in the NCC is increasing every year," the Director General said. Lt Gen Singh said the ratio of women in the NCC was around 13 per cent in 2010, which has gone up to around 35 per cent this year. "Some states have a higher ratio of women cadets. States like Delhi, Kerala, and north eastern states have higher numbers of girls, with some states having almost 50 per cent girl cadets," he said.

Talking about the future plans of the NCC, Lt Gen Singh said the training is being revamped and use of simulators for training is being increased. At present the NCC is using 98 firing simulators, 71 rowing simulators, and 62 flying simulators. "At all places we have facility of simulators," he said. Lt Gen Singh also mentioned the special 'Ek Bharat, Shreshtha Bharat' – Independence Day Camp (EBSB-IDC), organised by NCC during July 31–August 16, 2022, as part of the Independence Day celebration at the Red Fort to commemorate the 75th Independence Day.

The aim of the special EBSB-IDC was to allow cadets from all over the country to witness the 75th Independence Day event at the Red Fort and to show them the cultural diversity of India. Cadets from each district were part of the large India flag display at Red Fort during the Independence Day Parade.

Singh also lauded the exceptional performance of the NCC cadets in various sports events. He especially congratulated the NCC Junior Girls Hockey team for winning the Jawahar Lal Nehru Hockey tournament for the second year in a row. NCC's Republic Day camp in the national capital this year is being attended by 2,155 cadets from across the country, including 710 girls. It includes 114 cadets from Jammu and Kashmir and 120 cadets from the North-Eastern Region. The camp will also see participation of cadets and officers from 19 'Friendly Foreign Countries' under the Youth Exchange Programme.