DGR to set up Data Bank of retired Defence personnel

Bangalore, Jan 8 (UNI) The Directorate of Resettlement of the Defence Ministry has taken up the task of compiling a data bank of all retired personnel in a bid to streamline the resettlement process, Director General Resettlement (DGR) Maj Gen S G Chatterji said today.

Speaking after inaugurating second batch of the certificate course on Management for Armed Forces Officers at the Indian Institute of Management-Bangalore here, he said the DGR was so far helping nearly half of the 60,000 people, including officers, retiring from Defence forces in getting jobs.

''The Defence Minister has asked us to take this figure to 75 per cent during the current financial year and we are set to achieve the target.

''The Data Bank will have complete details of every Defence employee, who either want to work after retirement or remain dormant and stay at home,'' he added.

Maj Gen Chatterji said the Armed Forces wanted to create the 'Brand Sainik' offering the services of versatile and rugged men and women from the whose strength was adaptability.

''Defence personnel follow natural methodology of management of highest order and they are best suited for the corporate world. We want to promote Brand Sainik to get them the best jobs available after their retirement,'' he added.

Forty officers from all three streams of the Defence forces would undergo the second batch of the management programme.

The course would cost Rs 1.4 lakh each and the government would provide 60 per cent of this.

Prof M S Narasimhan, head of Executive Development Programme at IIM-B who is in charge of the course, said the officers who passed out of the first batch last year were 'gobbled up' by the MNCs, mainly of Indian origin.

''It is easy to teach the retired Army officials as they are very well behaved. Those who attended the first batch got excellent offers from companies like Infosys, TCS, Satyam and ICICI.

''The minimum salary offered to them was Rs 7.5 lakh per annum and one officer managed to corner the highest pay packet at RS 45 lakh,'' he added.

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