What is Indian Territorial Army? How To Join & Who Can Join?
No matter how childish it sounds, almost everyone dreams to become the hard unshakable worriers like in the movies. Since these are modern times, battles are not fought the way they used to in the times of kings and queens. Today we have soldiers who are no less than worriers. So, we can say that at some point in our lives, each one of us dreams to become a part of the Indian army. In this article, we will discuss one of the branches of the army i.e Indian territorial army.
Each year millions of people try to get into the army, but due to the strict and hard standards, only a few get the chance to serve. Don’t worry if you too have missed the age to apply for the army, Territorial army is here to help you make your dream come true to wear the army dress. Keep on reading if you want to know how to join the territorial army? In this article, we will address the following questions:
- What is TA (territorial army)?
- What is the role of the TA?
- What are the different types of units in TA?
- What are the eligibility criteria for TA? or Who can join TA?
- What is the recruitment process for TA or how to join TA?
What is Indian Territorial Army?
Before we discuss how you can join the Indian territorial army, it’s crucial to have at least a basic knowledge of what is Indian territorial army and what its role in the army is.
The territorial army is a branch of the Indian army that offers the Indian citizen to serve the nation but on part-time bases. The recruitment process for the territorial army is different than normal army recruitments. Since people are hired part-time, therefore, the recruitment process is not as hard as the regular army Bharti.
What is the role of the TA (territorial army)?
- The main role of the TA is to relieve the regular army from static duties.
- TA also provides assistance to civil administration to deal with the natural calamities. They also help with the maintenance of essential services whenever the lives of the communities are affected, and when the security of the country is threatened.
- In simple words, the soldiers in TA will pick up weapons only when there is an emergency, otherwise, their main role is to help the army with static duties.
Now that we have a clear understanding of the role and working of TA, let’s take a look at some important facts about the Indian territorial army that you should know before applying:
- TA does not offer full-time employment.
- People working for TA serve only a few months annually. i.e you are not recruited for the whole year, but rather a few months each year.
- You are not eligible to apply for the territorial army unless you have some sort of job or way to earn your daily wager.
- The salary of a TA personnel is the same as that of the regular army personnel. But, bear in mind that the salary is given only for the months that you will sever in the year.
From the above points, you must have understood by now that TA is not a full-time job. If you join the territorial army, then it does not mean that you will get to enjoy the perks of the regular army. Remember that you only get the wear the Army dress for a couple of months only.
Indian Territorial Army Eligibility For Male And Female
It’s true that TA opens its arm to all Indian citizens even if they have crossed the upper age limit required to get into the regular army, but, this does not mean that they will loosen up their other eligibility criteria. If you are thinking to apply for this force, then you must be aware of the TA eligibility criteria.
Firstly, let’s address the question: who can apply for TA? Anyone who is a citizen of India (male and female) can apply for TA, and ex-servicemen of the armed forces can also apply for this department. There are 3 ways to join the territorial army i.e as a jawan or soldier, as a JCO, or as an officer. Each of these entries has different eligibility and selection process. Let’s begin with a soldier.
| Eligibility criteria for soldier entry in TA | |
|---|---|
| Who can apply? | only mail |
| Age limit | 18 to 42 years |
| Education | Matriculation or 10th passed |
Eligibility criteria for JCO entry in TA
The ex-servicemen who have retired from one of the JCO posts can apply directly for JCO posts in TA. For civil candidates, there are no clear instructions by the Indian army about the eligibility criteria needed for JCO till the writing of this article. But, we will update the information here as soon as they are declared.
| Eligibility criteria for soldier entry in TA | |
|---|---|
| Who can apply? | male & female |
| Age limit | 18 to 42 years |
| Education | Graduation or above |
The detailed information on eligibility for territorial army (TA) has been covered extensively in a separate article. Please follow the given link to know more.
More About Indian Territorial Army
Here is some more information about the TA that you may find interesting (since you are going to apply for it).
| Information about TA | |
|---|---|
| Raising day | 9 October 1949 |
| Motto | सावधानी व शूरता (vigilance and valour) |
| Employees | 40,000+ |
| Awards | 1 Ashok Chakra, 1 Kirti Chakra, 5 Ati Vishisht Seva Medals, 5 Vir Chakras, 5 Shaurya Chakra, 1 Yudh Seva Medal, 74 Sena Medals, 15 Vishisht Seva Medals, 17 Mentioned-in-Dispatches, 266 COAS commendation cards. |
| Celebrity employee | M.S.Dhoni (former Indian cricket team captain), Abhinav Bindra (Olympic gold medalist), and others |
What are the different types of units in TA?
There are two types of units in the territorial army, non-departmental and departmental. In total these two forms total 65 units of TA. The non-departmental includes 40 units that are affiliated to different regiments of the regular Indian army, meaning they are considered as part of those regiments. Also, there is an H&H TA unit and an engineer TA unit in non-departmental units.
As for the departmental units, there are the following units: Ecological TA, Indian oil corporation, Indian railways, & Oil and natural gas corporation.
So, this was a piece of brief information about the Indian territorial army. We have covered all the important details extensively in their separate articles (the links are given above). If you are looking for more info, then do visit those articles.