Role Of NDA In Making One Of The Strongest Armies In The World
Do you know that National Defense Academy of India is one of the very professional, and at the same time very prestigious military training academy in the world? NDA is a tri-service academy of India, which trains the cadets for three national services of honor – the Army, the Air Force and the Navy. It was commissioned formally in December 1954 but was finally raised on 16th Jan 1955.
Role Of NDA In Making One Of The Strongest Armies In The World
Only the people with guts, courage, and dedication can receive training at this prestigious defense academy of India. No normal to average person can stand the rigorous and grueling training sessions of the NDA. The academy has produced men of irons and till now, it has gifted India about 27 Chiefs of Staff from its glorious and strong alumni base.
The Training Schedule And Method At NDA
The NDA training center based in Pune, Maharashtra is very intense and hardcore. Not only they are trained to develop physically and mentally, but morally also.
The Academy understands and emphasizes regularly on the fact that physical fitness, mental fitness, and the moralistically right behavior are the three attributes which assure victory in all the conventional and non-conventional conflicts.
So, now the question is, how they are trained to meet the world military standards? Let us start by discussing their lifestyle and timetable, while they take the training at NDA.
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In NDA, the normal day of the candidate starts with the morning roll-call between 4 o’clock to 6 o’clock. In morning session, cadets perform some grueling drills and PT, which is called as physical condition. For the next two hours, the cadets perform Outdoor Training Drills (ODTS).
The schedule of any cadet is so packed that after the morning session, he has only some minutes left to return to the squadron and go to the academic classes.
Punctuality is never compromised at NDA. The class is up to 2 o’clock in the afternoon. There is a lunch break of 45 minutes after that. So, where is the rest gap? Well, there is no rest gaps for the cadets and just after the lunch, they go to the PT classes and Sports training sessions.
The time slot between 3 o’clock to 6 o’clock in the afternoon is dedicated to the development of the spirit of sportsmanship and camaraderie.
For studies, the cadets get two hours in the evening, i.e., from 6:30 pm to 8:30 pm. Another one hour is reserved for the dinner and PT and some games. The final lights out take place at 10:15 pm. This same schedule is repeated for three years in NDA. Isn’t that a little harsh? Yes, truly it is, but this is how they inculcate the highest values needed for the service of the nation.
Values At NDA
NDA’s biggest motto is to prepare its candidate for the best and inculcate the value of ‘service before self’. In the entire three years, they are being trained to inculcate all of these values as a part of their lifestyle and deeds. You must have got an idea by now that only the best men can make it through the course at NDA.
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It is difficult for many cadets to meet the standards of the NDA. Only a few people know that in the 127th course of the NDA, there are about 40 drop-outs in between the course.
The reason was the incapability of the cadets to cope with the rigorous and strict routine at the NDA. NDA clarifies its value and clearly states that NDA breeds only the best.
Different Types Of Training And Facilities
(A) General Training For All The Three Forces, Especially Army
As discussed, the schedule of the training is very gruel. There is a training called Camp Torna. This is a field training session. It is rough-and-tough sort of a training.
It is conducted at the foothills of Rajgarh and Torna forts. It is conducted in the 6th term of the whole training process.8-10 days training is given with an especial emphasis on night training.
It encompasses the ambush and patrolling exercises. The training for the army includes attack operation of war, use of the radio equipment, and capsule on counter-insurgency and endurance-cum-navigation exercise. The cadets are provided with the INSAS 5.56 rifles and Drona firing simulators.
(B) Training For The Air Force
Instead of the towed gliders, the cadets are now trained with motorized powered gliders Dimona HK36TC. Due to this, the flying training process has brought about a total positive shift in the flying training process.
The confidence and flying skills are now at par with the world-class cadets. The academy covers a vast array of subjects in the aviation field like airframes, aerodynamics, meteorology, navigation, and aero-engines.
The AFTT (Air Force Training Team) has equipped itself with a flying training simulator. This simulator gives the cadet a feel as if the cadet is flying on an aircraft. It shows that the NDA has embraced the IT revolution in all its entirety.
(C ) Training For The Navy
In order to provide the watermanship raining the NTT (Naval Training Team) of the NDA has now procured the largest holding of boats.
The types of boats under its holding are parasail, windsurf boats, 420 class boats, high-speed boat, floating jetty etc. As the Navy solely survives on its communication, navigation and seamanship power, the cadets are being trained to be proficient for the same.
There is a dedicated Koden navigational radar, and one planetarium, Tara Mandal, for the training of the Navy cadets. All the facilities provided to the cadets here matched the training patterns of the world.
Conclusion
All the discussion above proves that the NDA provides a substantially strong foundation for pursuing the career and service in the Indian Military services.
After completion of 3 year training, the cadets get a degree from JNU. After that, the cadets join one of the training establishments, either IMA (Indian Military Academy) Dehradun, Air Force Academy (Hyderabad) or different training ships.
You must have got an idea by now that how strongly NDA is making one of the strongest armies in the world. NDA is dedicated to the cadets who are best and they utilize their best and invest it to the service of the nation.