New Delhi, Oct. 23: The National Commission for Scheduled Castes (NCSC) wants the army to either reserve jobs for the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes, or create more regiments for them.

The first option would mean setting aside for the SCs and STs a percentage of all jawan recruitment. The second would mean setting up new regiments that will take in jawans only from these disadvantaged groups ? just as the Jat Regiment recruits only Jat jawans.

Commission chairman Suraj Bhan clarified that there is no suggestion for reservations at the officer level.

“It is not just the NCSC; several parliamentary committees, too, have made similar recommendations (for reservation in the army),” Bhan said.

“You see, admissions to various regiments ? and I am talking about the jawans and not officers ? are primarily done on regional or caste basis. The Jat Regiment will only admit Jats. The Rajputana Rifles only has Rajput jawans.”

He went on: “Or you have regional regiments ? the Kumaon or the Garhwal Regiment, the Gurkha Regiment, etc ? where jawans from only these regions are admitted. Where are the regiments for the largest section of the population?

“Just like the Mahar regiment, we also had the Chamar regiment. But the government abolished it after independence. You may not like the sound of the word ‘chamar’ and think it is derogatory; but the fact is that Chamars are a caste and people are identified with that caste. Why not a regiment called the ‘Ambedkar Regiment’?”

The army, however, does not seem too excited. Sources dismiss any notion that naming regiments after castes or regions could be regressive, arguing they are a source of pride and motivation for the troops. Besides, the army already recruits a large number of SC and ST jawans without actually calling it reservation, the sources said.

The Mahar Regiment, for instance, recruits only Mahars, who are SCs, as jawans. The Sikh Light infantry is meant for Scheduled Caste Sikhs.

Army chief General J.J. Singh himself belongs to a regiment, the Maratha Light Infantry, that recruits only SCs as jawans.

The army chief, asked whether there was any plan to alter the existing regimental structure, said there wasn’t.

“The army’s strength is its regimental history and honour. We are a professional army that is apolitical and secular. We have proven it over and over again,” he said.