Chandigarh, Aug 7 : The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has approved an increase in the strength of the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) from 162,000 to 220,000 personnel to support the economic rise of the country, Ministry officials said on Thursday.

Sharing information, CISF unit Commander Lalit Pawar, who heads the security of Punjab and Haryana Civil Secretariat in Chandigarh, said this will also generate new employment opportunities, particularly through upcoming recruitment drives.

In 2024 alone, 13,230 personnel were recruited, and the recruitment for another 24,098 is currently underway.

The CISF is expected to add about 14,000 personnel every year, thereby infusing young blood into the police force and making it more battle-ready.

These recruitment efforts are also likely to attract a greater number of women candidates, supported by the force's progressive policies aimed at increasing the representation of women across all ranks.

Pawar said that in the past year, the CISF has inducted seven new units under its security wing, comprising deployments at the Parliament House Complex, Ayodhya airport, NTPC Coal Mining Project in Hazaribagh, ICMR-National Institute of Virology in Pune, Buxar Thermal Power Project, Jawahar Thermal Power Project in Etah, and the Beas Satluj Link Project in Mandi.

Additionally, two new units were inducted under the fire wing at the Parliament House Complex and Jawahar Thermal Power Project at Etah.

The CISF unit Commander added that as India's economy scales new heights, this augmentation will bolster CISF's deployment across a range of critical sectors, including the rapidly expanding aviation and port sectors, thermal power plants, nuclear installations, vital installations like hydropower plants and jails in Jammu and Kashmir.

With the decline of left-wing extremism in states like Chhattisgarh, new industrial hubs are anticipated to emerge, necessitating a stronger CISF presence to provide comprehensive and effective security to these units, he said.

This expansion highlights the growing role of CISF in safeguarding key national assets, in conjunction with India's advancing economic growth and infrastructure development.

/IANS