Several cantonments to be shrunk into smaller ‘military stations’

The Indian Army is set to merge civil areas at cantonments with municipal corporations and municipalities and designate them as military stations, shedding the colonial tag. The first cantonment to be renamed a military station is Yol in Himachal Pradesh, with Secunderabad and Nasirabad among the cantonments set to shrink. Not all cantonments will become military stations as some army and civilian pockets are intertwined. The move will benefit civilians who were not getting access to state government welfare schemes and enable the army to focus more on developing military stations.

The Indian Army is set to have fewer cantonments, created during the British era, with the government embarking on a major drive to merge civil areas at these army bases with municipal corporations and municipalities, and designate the cantonments as military stations, officials familiar with the development said on Monday.

The development comes at a time when the army is reviewing British-era practices (AFP)

Yol in Himachal Pradesh is the first cantonment to shed the colonial tag and be renamed as a “military station”, said one of the officials cited above, asking not to be named.

The development comes at a time when the army is reviewing British-era practices in consultation with all stakeholders including the top brass, serving officers, soldiers and veterans.

With Yol out of the list, the army currently has 61 cantonments spread across the country. Secunderabad in Telangana and Nasirabad in Rajasthan are among the cantonments that are set to shrink and become military stations with their civilian areas being merged with the local civic governing bodies, a second official said, also asking not to be named.

To be sure, not all cantonments are likely to become military stations as the army and civilian pockets are intertwined and that may not permit a segregation, the officials said citing Delhi and Lucknow cantonments.

The shedding of the cantonment tag is a departure from the archaic colonial practice of creating cantonments, said the first official. Yol ceased to be a cantonment from April 27 after a defence ministry notification in this connection.

The carving out of military stations by merging civilian areas with the local civic bodies will benefit all stakeholders, the officials said.

Civilians who were not getting access to state government welfare schemes through the municipal corporations and municipalities will be able to avail the schemes after civilian areas become part of the local bodies, and the army will also be able to focus more on the development of the military stations, the officials added.

“Civilian residents of cantonments do not benefit from state government welfare schemes as the cantonments are governed by Cantonment Boards under the Defence Estates Department of the defence ministry. Hence, there is a popular demand from the civilian residents and state governments for excision of cantonments,” said the second official, adding that cantonments are a colonial phenomenon, and military stations are better administered.

Cantonment Board employees and assets will be taken over by the civic bodies after the excision happens, he said.

In January, the defence ministry announced the separation of civilian areas from the Secunderabad Cantonment and their merger with the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation, a long-pending demand of the Telangana government.

In a communication sent to the state government giving its approval for the excision of civilian areas from the cantonment, the defence ministry said a committee was being formed to work out the modalities for the same.

Last year, Prime Minister Narendra Modi unveiled a naval ensign at the commissioning ceremony of aircraft carrier Vikrant, with the new flag drawing inspiration from the seal of Maratha king Shivaji Maharaj and the Cross of St George being dropped, a move that the PM described as getting rid of the burden of a colonial past.