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Old 10th January 2012, 23:34   #61
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Re: Joining The Armed Forces

BTW, nandu, and I am writing this because this is primarily a forum for automotive enthusiasts, how many times did you encourage your kids to be a car tuner, rally/race driver, automobile engineer or an auto journalist for that matter? Do you by any chance think that these professions are any inferior to yours? And who gave you the right to say that "regretfully" he worked for Bill Gates? That one man, through his philanthropy is doing more good for the underprivileged kids of this world than the entire armies of the world combined. It's ok to promote your own vested interests, but not by belittling those who actually are trying to make a difference.
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Old 10th January 2012, 23:57   #62
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Re: Joining The Armed Forces

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Originally Posted by rohan_iitr View Post
What exactly is this QUALITY OF LIFE that you have mentioned ? Could you please elaborate ?

Also, please clarify what is meant by the phrase - boy grows into man ?

Rohan
Ah! Questions, questions... this is too tempting.



Rohan, I have cast Tom Cruise for playing you, be happy about that.

Last edited by Samurai : 10th January 2012 at 23:58.
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Old 11th January 2012, 00:28   #63
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Re: Joining The Armed Forces

Friends, let us give a chance to the thread starter to respond here and do not put forward our views left and right !

This is my 2nd post in this thread, yes I already posted before, 1st one is #57
http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/shifti...ml#post2641288

I am sure @nanduchitnis had other more relevant and +ve intentions of starting this thread.

It`s up to the thread starter but IMO, to keep alive this useful thread, the moderator may be requested to delete all other irrelevant posts here and stick to the topic of queries and answers by eligible persons associated with the armed forces who are best qualified w.r.t. the intention of this thread.

At the same time, the responsible persons here answering queries need to be more careful in their choice of words as some of the posts by them do not reflect the true intention of this thread, instead attracting more off-topic response.

We have all kinds of thread here in Team-BHP and some of the posts here can be moved to like ... "My Dream and Reality" or "How I wish I ..." kind of new threads! No offence to anybody, it's just that we can always come up with points to support or malign any profession and if we do that this thread is going to be closed sooner than later by the moderator with some of us getting infractions.

-------------

#63 - is this the answer to Rohan`s query for Quality of Life or Boys grows into Man ? or both ?
Sorry, but this is surely an unwanted post.

Last edited by AvonA7 : 11th January 2012 at 00:52. Reason: edit post ...
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Old 11th January 2012, 00:39   #64
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Re: Joining The Armed Forces

I think it is wrong video here. Jack Nicholson was court martial-ed in this movie. Bollywood remake (or rip off) - Shaurya also court martial-ed KK Menon who played Jack's role.

This thread is about attracting people to the great careers at Indian Armed Forces and not for some chauvinistic (and not so chauvinistic) goals.

I watched Good Will Hunting a few days back, here's an excerpt


So should everyone stop working for NSA based on Matt Damon's argument?

Let's not talk off topic: if anyone has interest in joining armed forces or want to know more about career options in armed forces for themselves or anyone else (kids, relatives, etc) can ask questions.

@Armed Forces Panel: can we start with documenting entry points to different armed forces opportunities.

Last edited by akbaree : 11th January 2012 at 00:44. Reason: corrected spelling error
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Old 11th January 2012, 00:39   #65
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Re: Joining The Armed Forces

Actually, what is the relevance of this thread? To create awareness? Do we really think that the kids these days are not aware of this option? And if it indeed is about creating awareness about a certain profession, why not create several threads on creating awareness about joining the IT industry, medical science, banking, social activism, police, politics, law and judiciary, academics and teaching, farming industry, cooking, fashion designing and so on? I mean if I started a thread on why we should encourage our children to consider nursing or gardening as a profession, would that be relevant on this forum? It is one thing to share your experiences about your chosen profession but quite another to try to influence others to get their kids to consider that as an option by somehow trying to prove that their chosen vocation is somehow better.
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Old 11th January 2012, 00:41   #66
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Re: Joining The Armed Forces

I have a lot to say in this thread, I will spend some time and effort in constructing my post because I feel it is very important. In the meanwhile, @ AvonA7, i did not find any irrelevant posts or personal attacks, let's leave that to the mods, i think the thread has gone on fine, with ideas and counter ideas. Wait for my post later.
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Old 11th January 2012, 08:49   #67
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Re: Joining The Armed Forces

There are always two sides of the coin, no doubt about it! Ideas and counter ideas are a part of daily life. However, I personally feel this thread is heading way off the mark. Guys, I would appreciate to put down the facts and not continue arguing because we have to!

@ huntrz and Astleviz: Your points are completely valid, however most of their answers have already been provided. Nobody is shying off the facts. Please go through the previous posts.

I hope it should be clear by now that Armed Forces are not superior to any other profession, even then they deserve and get more respect than the others.

You say, kids are aware of these things?

Please go through the links below and try to think why it is so?

Shortage of 14,448 officers in Army, Navy, Air Force - Indian Express

IAF faces shortage of 400 pilots - Rediff.com India News

To plug officer shortage, Indian Army to open Bihar academy - The Economic Times

Global Politician - Indian Army faces Massive Shortage of Officers

IMO, in this time and age, where India produces on an average approx. 400k to 500k MBA graduates every year. Isn't it quite a paradox that the country doesn't have enough officers to defend its borders!

This thread is to spread awareness among the young teens who have this dream of being a CEO of some reputed brand, but at the same time, are unaware of career in Armed Forces. In my neighborhood, I know of at least 15 kids who neglected this option. I am not sure things are any better in other parts of the country.

Again, it is their choice what they want to be, I had the choice and I hope many of you had the choice as well. We chose what we found better. This thread is to pen down the merits and demerits of the career as an option. Decision should be left for the readers. I, for one, see a lot of merits in Armed Forces over other professions (again, enlisted in earlier posts).

And this is coming from a guy, who in the first year of his job is earning over a lakh per month! I talk to my friends and relatives; and instantly realize despite some problems and lesser money in their profession, the quality of services and the sole feeling of being responsible for your nation's welfare is priceless! Given a choice, I would love to be in those boots, period.

Last edited by Ace F355 : 11th January 2012 at 09:08.
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Old 11th January 2012, 09:12   #68
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Re: Joining The Armed Forces

Quote:
Originally Posted by AvonA7 View Post
#63 - is this the answer to Rohan`s query for Quality of Life or Boys grows into Man ? or both ?
Quote:
Originally Posted by akbaree View Post
I think it is wrong video here. Jack Nicholson was court martial-ed in this movie.
Sheesh, you guys too serious.

I was trying to add some levity. I saw Rohan questioning military guys why they think their job is superior. I felt it needed a punchy military reply, in Jack Nicholson style. Obviously, it doesn't answer the exact question asked.

When I was young I had once asked somebody why military guys don't pay tax or get free facilities unlike the civilians. I was told military guys are willing to face death as part of their job. Can't say the same about bankers, engineers or other professions. Yet to meet a Volvo bus driver who is willing to face death as part of the job. Let's not bring accidents into the picture, it can happen to anybody. Even an unemployed man can have an accident. Military guys will operate in conditions that has very high chance of death or disability. They also live in in-hospitable conditions away from family for months or years together. That kind of sacrifice for others is not made by any other profession.

An investment banker working 18hours a day is also working hard and sacrificing his family life. But that is not for the greater good. Let's not compare that with soldiers hunting terrorists in the border.
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Old 11th January 2012, 09:27   #69
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Re: Joining The Armed Forces

^^ @Ace - The shortages are also due to the fact that the Service Selection Board rejects a lot of candidates due to various reasons. The SSB has very stringent selection criteria; rightly so. They won't take a guy/girl whose palms sweat as the gun might slip from the hands or they might reject candidates with too much wax in the ear !!
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Old 11th January 2012, 09:36   #70
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Re: Joining The Armed Forces

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Originally Posted by rohan_iitr View Post
Flying a costly aircraft is a matter of pride, why ? Does the pilot own that aircraft ? Has he designed any component of that aircraft ? He is simply operating something which has been designed by someone else and purchased by someone else. It is like saying that a BMTC bus driver is proud that he is driving an expensive Volvo bus. (Pardon me for the crude comparison, but it drives home the point)

I saw the NDA video, I am still unclear on boy to man conversion. All I could get from the video was some boys getting up early morning to do physical exercise and later sleep in the lecture sessions, and their professors have no problem with students sleeping in their class. What I conclude from this video is that our nation is being guarded by people who can't even remain awake in a lecture.
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Originally Posted by Astleviz View Post
I for one don't see any venom in Rohan's post. If anything, he has the courage to speak up his mind and articulate his rational views.
The venom here is his obvious contempt for the services, and that is what rankles most. Irreverence towards authority and frivolity seems to be the order of the day, but I believe there still are a few institutions which should be treated with respect by everyone. And the armed forces are the first among them.

Even if one doesn't agree with something there should be a courtesy in the way he expresses his contrary opinion, especially from someone who has qualified from one of the most elite citadels of education in the country.

Last edited by Gansan : 11th January 2012 at 09:39.
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Old 11th January 2012, 09:58   #71
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Re: Joining The Armed Forces

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Actually, the armed forces provide a whole lot of things that can be called "quality of life", but the major problem in penning it down is that most of it is inanimate. Let me try and put it this way, there is no other service which trains you to be an officer and a gentleman. There is only so much that money can buy. The rest needs to be imbibed. The services provide you with an opportunity to do just that. And if one spends sufficient time and energy just being alive and recipient in this environment, you change as a person. You enjoy things in life that would go un-noticed otherwise. The same rubs down to your family and those around you. To put it simply, you find more "quality" in "life".
Thanks Neel for your valuable inputs. The above quoted phrase is what I missed in my previous post completely. The things engraved in these kids mind during the training time serve them for rest of their lives and help them live a quality life. I was just a NCC cadet, yet the wiff of the my drills and training brings the utter brightness in my eyes.

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^^ @Ace - The shortages are also due to the fact that the Service Selection Board rejects a lot of candidates due to various reasons. The SSB has very stringent selection criteria; rightly so. They won't take a guy/girl whose palms sweat as the gun might slip from the hands or they might reject candidates with too much wax in the ear !!
You are bang on target. I myself was rejected during second session of group discussion by my testing officer in SSB. Can't really tell how much was I depressed when I realized this! However, these criteria have been almost unchanged over the years. Don't you think its really unfortunate that with such a huge young generation that we have in our country, right cadets for the job are becoming a rarity.
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Old 11th January 2012, 10:55   #72
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Re: Joining The Armed Forces

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Don't you think its really unfortunate that with such a huge young generation that we have in our country, right cadets for the job are becoming a rarity.
I agree. And I can't put a finger on a single thing which might explain this. Maybe the forces are not marketing it right, they sometimes live in a bubble of their own. And people outside don't get to know what it is like being an Army man etc. The really good thing I see is the involvement of the forces in sports - training/participation at the olympics level. A few more areas where they can contribute will lead to a more wider awareness and bigger audience; that I believe and hope.
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Old 11th January 2012, 11:03   #73
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Re: Joining The Armed Forces

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people outside don't get to know what it is like being an Army man etc. The really good thing I see is the involvement of the forces in sports - training/participation at the olympics level. A few more areas where they can contribute will lead to a more wider awareness and bigger audience; that I believe and hope.
That, my friend, is exactly what this thread is intended to do. There is this retired officer, seeking other commissioned and retired officers to help out other members look into the +ives and -ives of being in Armed Forces.

Kudos to him and others who have offered their help to those who are interested in this career. I hope to see something constructive to come out of it!
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Old 11th January 2012, 11:17   #74
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Re: Joining The Armed Forces

Come on I respect Armed Forces and worked with few retired Armed force people in the past. This thread will surely help someone to consider career in Armed forces just like any other field. That does not mean that others are inferior just because someone working for Bill Gates is not happy.

If you are passionate about it, go join armed forces that's it. Just like any other field.
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Old 11th January 2012, 11:21   #75
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Re: Joining The Armed Forces

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Would I have made it if I had attended the numerous SSB coaching classes throughout the country? Maybe, but then it would have been a different person who would have been selected and not the real me, and there was no way I could have kept up the pretense throughout my career. So, no regrets at all, as I had tried my best and maybe it was the most appropriate outcome after all.
Respect, sir! For showing the maturity and understanding in accepting the decision with dignity and for not selling your soul to the devil proverbially speaking.

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Originally Posted by huntrz View Post
Rohan has put very valid argument. I don't know why are we shying away from argument and constructive discussion. If the topic doesn't welcome valid arguments then why post in a public fora.
Every profession deserves respect and armed forces shouldn't be any different, most importantly if one feels respect seeing and armyman and not to an honest banker,honest doctor, honest nurse or an honest judge then I would think there is something wrong in the guy/gal. A banker and an engineer are equally important for nation building as a soldier. An engineer is not trained to dodge rocket and a soldier is not trained to design automobiles or maintain accounts. So we can really compare the two professions.
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Originally Posted by Astleviz View Post
Actually, what is the relevance of this thread? To create awareness? Do we really think that the kids these days are not aware of this option? And if it indeed is about creating awareness about a certain profession, why not create several threads on creating awareness about joining the IT industry, medical science, banking, social activism, police, politics, law and judiciary, academics and teaching, farming industry, cooking, fashion designing and so on? I mean if I started a thread on why we should encourage our children to consider nursing or gardening as a profession, would that be relevant on this forum?
I agree with your opinions. However, I dont think this is the relevant thread to discuss this point. From what I see the OP has created the thread to answer any queries from prospective joiners that he could answer with his experience and knowledge. And if one thinks they can use their knowledge/ experience in their field to help someone, its easy to create another thread rather than bring it in here.

@huntrz; hypothetical situation of a riot/ arson/ melee/ free for all. You see a politician, a cop and an armyman (name any other profession). Who would you run to in order to save your skin? I will argue with any banker in a bank, lawyer in a court, teacher in a classroom or a chef in a kitchen. Will I argue with an armyman on the warfront? The point is the respect is generated due to their dependability in a life or death situation. And how often they are exposed to such situations.

I would also like to clarify that I have had my own set of interactions with army guys and not all of them have been pleasant. In fact, one of my school friends who is in the army keeps addressing us as 'you bloody civilians'. It may be a joke for him, but I am not 19 all my life and it does not sound funny to me anymore. In the same way that he is generalising civilians, I can generalise armyman behaviour based on my interaction with him. But black sheep exist everywhere and it is true that there are more sacrifices made by folks in the defence forces than in civilian life. Does that mean that if my son wants to join the armed forces I will advise him not to? Just because one person is rude? No way.
I think the only area that sane people want to stay clear of is politics!

As far as I understand it, this discussion should be more relevant for people who are interested in joining the armed forces and would like clarifications. And I think the title is quite clear on that. Any career decision requires intent and effort. I do not intend to join the armed forces, so I would not be an active contributor here. But if someone I know needs some clarifications, I would not hesitate before recommending her/ him to see this thread.
Isnt it the same as any car ownership thread that we create? For example if I am a Honda Jazz owner, I can only give you details about that car. Why would anyone expect me to create threads on Tata, BMW or any other make? So why do you expect the good old captain to create threads on topics that are not relevant to him? if there are others who are willing to share knowledge, they should take it up. Its not his fault that other threads on other topics are not put up. His is a good effort at volunteering information and sharing his experiences.
For me, there is nothing I want to ask him specifically but it would be interesting to read. Maybe for you this thread is not relevant, so you dont subscribe to it till it holds sufficient relevance.
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