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Border Roads Organisations For a Career
Introduction: This Career is meant for information of those enterprising young men who have finished or are about to finish their academic studies and technical education in Civil, Mechanical or Automobile Engineering or Vocational Training in allied technical trades useful in Civil Engineering Projects and are looking forward for employment.
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Those who have a mind for working outdoors and possess zeal for adventure therein will find the career interesting because it is aimed at introducing them to a wonderful career in Border Roads Organisation (BRO) about which general public has hardly and knowledge-much less exposure.
Nature of Organisation: BRO is a fine young satellite of Armed Forces of India. It was raised in 1960 to carve roads through difficult Himalayas in North-Western and North-Eastern mountainous border areas of the country. It is a road builder Civil Engineering Organisation. Outwardly its function is similar to Central Public Works Department (PWD) or provincial PWDs, but in overall effect its role is akin to that of Corps of Engineers of the Army. It constructs and maintains roads in mountainous forward -areas where other constructing agencies normally can not operate.
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The officers and men of this Force are partly drawn from the Armed Forces and partly enlisted exclusively for this Department. The troops enrolled exclusively for this organisation are collectively known as General Reserve Engineer Force, or GREF. The personnel dl-awn from Army are considered on normal military duty. The technical Head of the organisations, located at New Delhi, is addressed as Director, General Border Roads.
Organisation of Units: The lower most independent working init of BRO is called Road Construction Company or RCC. Like a on of the provincial PWD, and RCC is commanded by an of the rank of Executive Engineer or Major and consists of anal platoons like Formation Cutting Platoon for cutting new Permanent Works Platoon for construction of culverts, retaining and breast walls, drains and parapets, etc. surfacing, for metalling the driveway and Road Maintenance keeping the finished roads, in good repairs. These platoons are placed under the charge of a platoon officer of the rank of Assistant Engineer or Assistant Executive Engineer or a Captain, who reports to the RCC for all executive, administrative and financial matters.
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Two or three RCCS make a Border Roads Task Force or a BRTF like a Circle of the provincial PWD or Engineer Regiment of the Army. A Task Force is commanded by a Superintending Engineer (Civil Engineer) to Lt. Colonel or Colonel of Corps of Engineers. Two or three BRTFs put together form a project.
The project is commanded by a Chief Engineer (Civil Engineer) or GREF or a Brigadier of the Corps or Engineers. To assist the RCCS and BRTFs to produce optimum results, the Organisation has some common service units, like Engineer Stores and Transport Company. Field Workshop looks after the repairs work of the departmental vehicles and assorted machinery; Medical Staging Sections and Medical Inspection Rooms, Dental Units, Signal Units, Provost Units, Postal Unit and Pioneer Companies, for undertaking jobs suggested by their respective names.
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These common service units are manned by officers having expertise in specific fields. GREF, Pioneer Coys comprising non technical personnel called 'Pioneers' are commanded by non technical officers called 'Civilian Office. The Medical Staging Section and Medical Inspection Rooms take care of the sick troops, while the dental officer and his team move from camp to camp for checking the dental problems of the road building personnel wherever deployed, Every Project has one Signal Officer for manning the wireless communications network. A Postal Unit is there to look after movement of dak. Provost Unit is an additional set up for internal security, etc.
Governing Regulations: The GREF officers and personnel are governed by Civil Service, Regulations of the Govt. of India for the purpose of recruitment, leave, pay and allowances and retirement or discharge, etc. They are also simultaneously governed under Army-Act 1950-with certain modifications-for the purpose of discipline.
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Tradesmen: Bulk of the Force comprises troops, required for and deployed on constructed of roads and also buildings at a times. They are pioneers, masons, drillers, dozer operation lf, compressor; drivers, mechanic, electricians, carpenters, mates leading hands and overseers, etc. The aforesaid road making troops are helped by clerks, nursing assistants, wireless operators, safaiwalas, cooks and other responsible for running the administration ill offices and camps. Among officers, the Civil Engineers form the largest portion of the Force followed by Electrical and Mechanical Engineers, administrators, medicos, signals and postal officers etc.
Recruitment: The recruitment of GREF officers is conducted by Union Public Service Commission based on the requirement projected by the Head of the Organisation. In addition, a goodnumber of officers rise from lower ranks through departmental promotions. The recruitment to various categories of GREF subordinates is done centrally' by the Commander GREF Centre and Records, located at Pune in Maharashtra. The advertisements for vacancies in officer cadres are issued by Union Public Service Commission and inserted in leading Newspapers, while those for subordinates are issued by GREF Records through 'Employment News' and 'Rozgar Samachar'.
Service Benefits: All benefits of service available to Central Govt. servants are applicable to GREF personnel also. Therefore, the benefits like children Education allowance, leave Travel Concession, Central Govt. Employees Group Insurance Scheme, General Provident Fund, House Rent Allowance, Allotment of Government Accommodation, Pension and Gratuity, etc., all are applicable to GREF nearly at per with other Central Government Employees.
Rather, the BRO's field of work being in remote areas, the troops are entitled, at a' number of places of work, to remote locality allowance of special compensatory allowance at variable rates according to the pay scale, the minimum being Rs. 125 p.m. and maximum Rs. 650 p.m. Those posted to North-Eastern Region also get a special duty allowance for that area at the rate of 121h% of basic pay. In addition to above benefits the GREF personnel are also entitled to following special concessions more or less similar to those of Armed Forces personnel:
(i) Free Rations: The GREF personnel are entitled to rations for self.
(ii) Canteen Stores: Nearly all GREF units run their own canteens, where essential general merchandise i.e., items of daily necessity are available at lesser canteen rates, utility items like watches, household appliances, crockery, cutlery and kitchenware, etc., are also available in the canteens of main campus.
(iii) Uniform and Uniform Allowance: The GREF officers and Personnel have to put on specified uniform which is Khaki in colour.
For that purpose the officers are paid an initial grant of Rs. 2400 in )Up 'B' officers and Rs. 3200 incase of Group 'A' officers in appointment for equipping them with the prescribed item for the first 5 years of service. Subsequently, this grant every year at the rate of Rs. 215 for group 'A' and Rs. 86 officers. In addition, group 'A' officers are paid at the and group 'B' officers at Rs. 30 per month for upkeep n. The supervisors and other ranks of the force are issued prescribed items uniform free of cost.
(iv) Free Accommodation : BRO provides free single bash a or hute free accommodation to those in active service.
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