By A Correspondent

Guwahati (Assam): With the National Cadet Corps (NCC) strength targeted to grow from 1.7 million to 2 million this decade, India’s Minister of State for Defence Sanjay Seth has called for expanding the infrastructure and training facilities for the cadets, as more girls were joining the largest volunteer youth force in the world. Sanjay Seth was attending thet deliberations on expansion, strengthening, and effective functioning of the youth force in India’s region comprising West Bengal, Sikkim and the seven northeastern states on Wednesday (October 15, 2026).

At a conference, India’s junior defence minister appreciated the participation of cadets from the northeastern states in the Republic Day Camp (RDC) held annually in December-January, and the increasing enrolment of girl cadets, reflecting the NCC’s contribution to women’s empowerment. He emphasised the need to work towards Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision of expanding the NCC from its present strength of approximately 1.7 million cadets to 2 million.

Sanjay Seth stressed the importance of motivating and guiding the youth to imbibe the spirit of ‘Nation First’ and called upon all nine participating states to formulate and implement practical, actionable plans for NCC expansion, with particular emphasis on strengthening infrastructure and enhancing training facilities for cadets and reaffirmed the Indian government’s commitment to support the growth of the youth force.

Quoting Modi that “the NCC is a movement that empowers India’s Yuva Shakti (Youth Power), making our youth confident, disciplined, and dedicated to the nation,” the minister of state for defence called for ensuring effective training, adequate institutional support, and improved coordination among stakeholders to strengthen the organisations outreach and functioning.

The conference provided a platform for strengthening coordination between the NCC and the state governments, with deliberations focusing on expanding NCC coverage, cadet welfare, training infrastructure, institutional strengthening, and addressing administrative challenges. It also emphasised the contribution of NCC towards social service and community development, character-building, leadership, national integration and the development of a spirit of service among young people.

The North Eastern Region NCC Directorate provides coverage across the seven states of Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland and Tripura, through nine Group Headquarters and 50 units. NCC is present in 1,645 educational institutions in the region, with a strength of approximately 125,000 cadets. Similarly, the West Bengal, and Sikkim NCC Directorate provides coverage through six Group Headquarters and 56 units, with NCC activities extending to 1,326 educational institutions and approximately 125,000 cadets.

The conference, led by NCC Director General Lieutenant General Virendra Vats, was attended by defence ministry’s Additional Secretary Dipti Mohil Chawla, ministers and senior officials from Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Tripura, West Bengal, and Sikkim, along with MoD and NCC officials.

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