New Delhi: Soldiers and officers shooting their own colleagues or turning their guns on themselves has led the Army to search for stress-busters. The immediate solution is liberal grant of allowance.
The Government has promised that defence forces will be more liberal in granting leaves and they will do an extensive study on what’s creating stress in the ranks.
Defence Minister A K Antony has told Parliament that he has asked officials to sympathetically consider leave applications of their jawans posted in high-risk areas.
The decision follows several incidents of fratricide—soldiers killing their colleagues—among armed forces in insurgency-ridden areas like Jammu and Kashmir and Northeast.
The Defence Institute of Psychological Research in Delhi has been asked to conduct a study in the Army and train Junior Commissioned Officers to act as counsellors in sensitive areas. The committee has been told to give report in two months.
Speaking in Rajya Sabha on Wednesday, Antony said there were 23 cases of fratricide, involving three officers and 16 jawans this year.
Recent incidents of fratricide involved two officers and seven jawans in Kashmir, Antony said. A committee has been appointed under the Chairmanship of Director DPIR to look into these incidents.
Courts of Inquiry are ordered after each incident to ascertain the cause; he said adding general factors for such incidents included perceived grievances due to harassment by seniors and arguments between colleagues.
The government has initiated various measures to address the issue. The army has also initiated increased formal and informal interaction between senior and junior officers.
Identification and counselling of persons who are at higher risk of combat stress by Regimental Medical Officers, junior leaders and unit commanders and counselling by religious teachers are among other administrative and welfare measures taken to prevent incidents of fratricide.
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