Delhi Lieutenant Governor (L-G) V.K Saxena on Tuesday approved the extension of all 8539 Home Guards volunteers, including 4060 deployed with DTC as bus marshals.
He has also reiterated his earlier directions to Chief Minister and Home Minister to complete the process of fresh enrolment within the specified period.
The proposal for fresh enrolment of 10,285 Home Guards Volunteers is pending with the GNCTD since July and no time schedule for completion of enrolment process has been mentioned by Home Department in the latest proposal.
The last enrolment of Home Guards Volunteers was made in the year, 2011 and since then, their tenure has been extended from time to time with the approval of the L-G.
The Rule 8 of Delhi Home Guards Rules provides that “The term of office of a member of the Home Guards shall be three years”.
The proposal approved reads that the tenure of the existing Home Guards Volunteers were going to lapse on 30.09.2023 and with the L-G approving the proposal for amendment in Rule 8 of Delhi Home Guards Rules, 1959, last week, their term has been extended up to 31.03.2024.
It said that therefore, the tenure of Home Guard Volunteers on roll as on 30.09.2023 (and due for the discharge between the period 31.03.2023 to 30.09.2023) may be extended up to 31.03.2024 or till the time fresh enrolment takes place, whichever is earlier subject to satisfactory service records, general conduct as Home Guards during the tenure and also subject to physical fitness.
It said that earlier when the Home Department’s proposal relating to extension of tenure for six months i.e. up to 30.09.2023 by amending Rule 8 of Delhi Home Guards Rules, 1959, was routed through Minister (Home) and Chief Minister, it was examined by the L-G Secretariat and was agreed upon by the L-G with the directions to complete the process of fresh enrolment within the extended period.
The proposal said that again a proposal for extension of tenure for a period of six months i.e. up to 31.03.2024 or till fresh enrolment was made, whichever is earlier, was submitted by Home Department for consideration of the L-G.
In their last proposal to extend the tenure in February, 2023, the DGHG – GNCTD had submitted, through the Home Minister and the Chief Minister, that due to several commitments including G-20 Summit and for fighting the pandemic of COVID-19 with new strain, the role of Home Guards as auxiliary to Police as well as in DTC buses as Bus Marshals is very crucial for compliance of various preventive measures adopted by GNCT of Delhi. However, even after a lapse of 07 months, the fresh recruitments have not been made.
The Home Department provided the Age profile of Home Guard Volunteers, according to which there are 1331 volunteers below 35 years, 6221 between 35-50 years and 987 above 50 years.
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