As many as 70 companies of the Railway Protection Force (RPF) besides the 1,700 companies of the regular paramilitary forces are being deployed for the upcoming elections in Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Uttarakhand, Goa and Punjab.
In a communication to the Chief Secretaries of these States, RPF Director General Sanjay Chander has sought provision of accommodation and conveyance to an Inspector rank officer at par with deputy commandants of the paramilitary forces saying an Inspector is in-charge of a company as against Assistant Commandants in the regular paramilitary forces, leading to resentment in the Group A services.
“….your attention is invited towards the structure of RPF which is different from the structure of CAPFs (Central Armed Police Forces). In RPF, Inspector is incharge of a Post/Company unlike CAPFs where Assistant Commandants are incharge of a Coy (company).
At the same time, Asstt. Security Commissioners/Asstt. Commandants in RPF are Group-A officers who are assigned supervision of Post/Coys like Deputy Commandants in CAPFs,” reads the communication sent to the Chief Secretaries of the poll-bound States.
It further said, “Therefore, Inspectors of RPF should not be compared with Inspectors of CAPFs and should be provided facilities of accommodation, transportation etc at par with Asstt. Commandants of CAPFs as incharge of Coys.”
Similarly, the RPF DG also requested the Chief Secretaries that Asstt. Security Commissioner of RPF should be treated at par with Supervising Officer of CAPFs and accorded facilities of accommodation and transportation at par with Deputy Commandants.
A company in a uniformed service typically comprises 100 personnel. Paramilitary forces like the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), Border Security Force (BSF), Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP), and Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB) and the like are also referred to as CAPFs.
A section of officials in the CAPFs are miffed at the equation of the Inspectors, a subordinate post with the Assistant Commandants who are Group A Gazetted service officers recruited through the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) These officers are referred to as cadre officers.
“The RPF should have sought provision of facilities without equating its ranks with those of the CAPFs as it is demoralising for the officers. While the mandate of the RPF and CAPFs are different, the sanctity of the ranks must be maintained,” a cadre officer said, requesting anonymity.