Entry into the armed forces is a cherished goal for these youth from different parts of Prakasam district who have been shortlisted by the Society for Training and Employment Promotion (STEP) for a strenuous training session for selection at the Army recruitment rally.
Most of the 250 odd selected youth are from the western parts of the district, where one member or the other from each family made it to the defence forces, said STEP chief executive officer B.Ravi satisfied with the performance of the trainees ahead of the recruitment rally to be held at Guntur from July 10.
“This is our maiden attempt to prepare the aspirants for a job in the army,” said Dr. Ravi who had roped in the Sainik Welfare department for shortlisting of candidates. As many as 80 of the aspirants hailed from the Scheduled Castes, added the CEO, which imparts skills to job aspirants to improve their employability.
The tough training regimen starts at dawn and continues till dusk, he said. “Though a pass in SSC examination is enough for selection as Havildar, even graduates have turned up for the training session,” added the CEO who had arranged for board and lodging as also tracksuits and sports shoes for the trainees.
“We also provide coaching for the candidates in reasoning and mathematics to fare well in other recruitment tests as well,” he said.
“We are determined to enter the armed forces at any cost,” said a group of candidates, who were confident of performing well in the recruitment drive on completion of training.
More than 1,000 aspirants applied for the pre-recruitment training. After thorough screening, only one-fourth of them qualified for training, said Sainik Welfare department senior assistant Anand Rao. Ex-servicemen Jeevan Kumar, Raghava Rao, Charles and Paul, who were roped in for the strenuous training session lasting over a month, provided valuable tips to the trainees to qualify in the test which requires a lot of physical endurance.
Society for Training and Employment Promotion provided training for the aspirants
