Women should constitute ten per cent of defence forces: Patil

New Delhi, Oct 29 (UNI) Heaping praise on the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) for according women a fitting representation in the force, Union Home Minister Shivraj Patil today suggested that sincere efforts should be made to employ more and more women in the defence forces.

''We should try and employ more women so that their strength go up to at least 10 per cent in the defence forces,'' the Minister said adding that CRPF was the only paramilitary force in the country which has fully operational women unit.

Presiding over the CRPF's 68th anniversary function at Jhadoda Kalan on the outskirts of the city, Mr Patil said, ''I am delighted to see women company leading the parade today.'' ''The force has an impressive record of six decades and that is the prime reason why all the states want it be deployed at various important places,'' he said.

Applauding the work done by the CRPF outside the country, he said UN and other international agencies have praised this Indian force.

Talking about what the government was doing to update and strengthen the CRPF, Mr Patil said Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has supported all the demands of the paramilitary force and has already directed the officials concerned to do look into the problems being faced by the CRPF personnel.

''Jawans and officers should be provided the basic facilities wherever they were deployed as they serve us in difficult conditions,'' the Minister said while disclosing how the personnel were living even without bathrooms and toilets.

The Home Minister also said families of the CRPF personnel should also be taken care of and government was planning to provide more residential quarters to them.

He also gave away the awards to the CRPF personnel on the occasion of the raising day of the force.

UNI