Within 10 days of the dastardly Pulwama terror attack on 14 February 2019, which killed 40 CRPF jawans, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) approved air transit facilities for the CRPF between Jammu and Srinagar, and Srinagar and Jammu.
Recently, another attack was attempted on the CRPF convoy, which comprised of 400 jawans, in Banihal in Jammu & Kashmir. Fortunately, the attack failed.
But the question here is, why are so many jawans still being transported by road, when the government had already approved air transit facilities?
“CRPF road convoy moves almost every day between Jammu and Srinagar. Ever since the government has notified air transit facility, less than 100 CRPF jawans have availed of it.”Senior CRPF officer
The Quint spoke to a few CRPF jawans to see why so few were using air transit despite the danger of going by road.
What we learned is that the problem is financial.
To use the air transit facility, CRPF personnel are told to shell out money out of their own pockets to buy the air ticket, which is later reimbursed by the CRPF. This process of reimbursement can take up to two months, said a senior CRPF official.
“The starting salary (basic pay) of a CRPF jawan is Rs 26,000 per month. It is very difficult for a CRPF jawan to spare at least Rs 6,000-8,000 to purchase air tickets to travel within Jammu & Kashmir and vice versa. That is why most of them still prefer to go by the road convoy.”CRPF Jawan
Around 45,000 CRPF personnel are deployed in the Valley. On average, a minimum of 2-3 CRPF road convoy movements takes place every week. It is the responsibility of the CRPF and other Central Armed Police Forces and Armed Forces to transport their personnel safely to the nearest Railway station when they are going on leave, and Jammu is the nearest Railway station to Srinagar.
“When a CRPF jawan comes back from leave, he has to report to the Jammu camp. From the Jammu camp it is the responsibility of the CRPF to send him to the Srinagar camp. How can CRPF expect their personnel to spend money from their own pockets and travel on private flights?”VPS Panwar, Former CRPF Officer
‘In Talks With Air India For Air Transit Facility’: CRPF
The CRPF spokesperson has said that the CRPF is in talks with Air India and IRCTC to streamline air transit movement of jawans between Jammu and Srinagar. But he didn’t confirm how long that process will take. According to former CRPF officer VPS Panwar, even the Air India flights aren’t a real solution.
“BSF has tie-up with Air India but ask them how frequently they get flights. BSF is the least priority for Air India. Similarly, if CRPF has a tie-up with Air India or any other Airlines, then the contract should clearly state that a fixed number of seats or flights will be given to CRPF as and when demanded.”VPS Panwar, Former CRPF Officer
Air Transit Facility Depends on Availability of IAF and Air India: BSF
The Quint had earlier reported that CRPF officials had requested the MHA to provide air transit facility for the Pulwama terror attack convoy, and that that request had been ignored.
It was also reported that the BSF in January 2019 had requested airlifting facility for the stranded BSF personnel in Jammu & Kashmir – but that request too was turned down by the MHA.
A senior BSF official said that during the winters, it becomes problematic to transport large numbers of stranded personnel, which is why they sometimes seek the MHA’s assistance in airlifting them.
“BSF has a tie-up with Air India to ferry BSF personnel between Jammu and Srinagar on a routine basis. But everything depends on the availability, be it Indian Air Force (IAF) flights or Air India. Our wish is not their command.”Senior BSF Official
The BSF official added that when there is no air transit facility available, BSF personnel are transported by road.
Indian Army Has Fixed Air Transit Facility
Apart from the Central Armed Police Forces, the Armed Forces are also deployed in massive numbers in the Valley.
In the Army:
- IAF aircraft transport Army personnel between Delhi-Srinagar and Srinagar-Delhi twice a week.
- Air India transports Army personnel between Delhi-Srinagar and Srinagar-Delhi once a week.
- Air India transports Army personnel between Jammu-Srinagar and Srinagar-Jammu once a week.
“The road convoy movement between Jammu-Srinagar has reduced a lot, and it is only once a week, which on average contains only 20-25 vehicles. Number of Army personnel in this convoy is very less.”Army Official
It is very strange and unfortunate that the government thinks about the welfare of our security forces only after a major loss of life. Basic facilities like air transit should have been provided to the security forces years ago.
And now that they have got it, it’s expensive, and comes with no guarantee that it will be provided to every jawan.
(At The Quint, we are answerable only to our audience. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member. Because the truth is worth it.)