Government to Recruit 58,000 CISF Personnel for Security of Emerging Industrial Hubs Over Five Years
The Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has sanctioned the recruitment of 58,000 additional personnel for the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) over the coming five years. This decision aligns with the anticipated emergence of new industrial hubs in areas currently experiencing Left Wing Extremism (LWE). This expansion follows the approval by President Droupadi Murmu to increase the CISF's authorised strength from 2 lakh to 2.2 lakh.
Currently, the CISF has a strength of 1.62 lakh, and the planned expansion will involve inducting approximately 14,000 personnel each year. According to a senior CISF official, these recruits will bolster security across critical sectors such as aviation, sea ports, power plants, nuclear installations, and high-security prisons in Jammu and Kashmir.
The geographic reach of LWE violence has considerably diminished over the past decade, decreasing from 126 districts across ten states in 2013 to 38 districts expected by 2024. With Home Minister Amit Shah targeting a March 2026 deadline to eradicate Maoist activities in Chhattisgarh, the government anticipates industrial growth in these regions, necessitating increased CISF deployment.
In 2024, the CISF recruited 13,230 personnel, with an additional 24,098 recruitment processes underway. The demand for CISF security has intensified post-Operation Sindoor, with 35 requests currently being processed and nearly 100 more pending from public sector units and private organisations.
Over the past year, the CISF has assumed responsibility at seven new locations, including the Parliament House complex, Ayodhya airport, NTPC’s coal mining project in Hazaribagh, the National Institute of Virology in Pune, and various thermal power projects in Buxar and Jawahar, as well as the Beas Satluj Link project in Mandi.
Originally established in 1969 with just three battalions, the CISF now secures 359 vital establishments across India, offering integrated security to crucial infrastructure and strategic projects.
