Dressed in pristine white naval uniform,Cadet Pranav Kalia is all smiles on the stage. He is,after all,the centre of attention this Friday morning. Just like fellow National Cadet Corps (NCC) Cadet Ajay Sharma,who sits a few chairs away,along with officers from the NCCs Directorate of Punjab,Himachal Pradesh and Chandigarh,at a special briefing held at Kendriya Sadan. While Kalia is a final year BSc student at the citys Postgraduate Government College for Men in Sector 11,Sharma is a fourth year mechanical engineering student at Panjab University. The two are also cadets from NCCs Chandigarh group,who are now set to join the Indian Armed Forces. It is a proud moment for us, chips in Maj Gen Mohabat Singh Virk,ADG,NCC Directorate of Punjab,Haryana,Himachal Pradesh and Chandigarh,as he mentions the efforts being made by the directorate to groom cadets for defence service academies. Incidentally,last training year saw the regions NCC Directorate send in as many as 90 cadets,the highest in comparison to any other directorate in the country. At the beginning of the current year,we are delighted that six of our cadets are set to join the various defence academies, says a visibly pleased Maj Gen Virk. While Cadet Sharma is set to join the Air Force Academy at Dundigal for his training as a fighter pilot,Cadet Kalia will join the Indian Military Academy (IMA),Dehradun. I have always been interested in a career in armed forces but never realised NCC would be such a vital stepping stone, says Kalia,who hails from Himachal Pradesh. Cadet Anita Kumari from NCC Group Jalandhar and Vaishali Pathania from Chandigarh Group have already joined Officers Training Academy at Chennai. Cadet Suman Godara of NCC Group Chandigarh will join the next batch in the same academy, informed the ADG. Also present on the occasion were parents of Cadet Godara,who hails from Hisar. I have three daughters and all of them are in the NCC. It is such a proud feeling that I am here, says Godaras mother Maya Godara. In a move aimed at guiding students,specially young cadets,towards a career in the armed forces,the Directorate is now looking forward to join hands with professional academies that can tutor students for entrance exams. During our various NCC training camps,we will focus on personality development with emphasis on communication skills. Also,cadets with an aptitude and motivation for defence forces will be encouraged and supported, says Virk.
