For border, a safety sheath. CVMs

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For border, a safety sheath

New Delhi, Jan. 11: When it comes to the safety of India's border guards, CBMs —

confidence-building measures —aren't enough, the Centre has decided.

So, enter CVMs.

Condom vending machines (CVM) will soon dot India's frontiers, protecting the

likes of the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) and Border Security Force (BSF)

troops.

The home ministry has entrusted the ITBP, which guards the remote and

inhospitable frontier with China, with buying 1,080 condom-vending machines that

will be distributed among all the paramilitary forces.

ITBP personnel man the Line of Actual Control (LAC) ahead of the army and spend

longer assignments on the field, often in remoter postings and at higher

altitudes compared with the army.

Among all the paramilitary forces, they are the most prone to ailments such as

frostbite, high-altitude pulmonary oedema and gangrene. But these are not the

only health risks they face.

Overall, paramilitary personnel in India reported 80 cases of HIV/AIDS last

year.

" We need to encourage safe-sex practices in troops posted in far-off border

areas for prolonged periods, " a senior paramilitary official said.

The CVM suppliers will need to meet technical specifications detailed in the

tender document, which says these machines:

• Should withstand rough handling

• Should not weigh more than 24kg

• Should not require electricity to operate

• Should have sleek design and fine craftsmanship

• Should have space for 25 packets

• Should dispense condoms only when the specified coin is inserted and not a

fake one or one of a different denomination

If the last requirement sounds intriguing, officials aren't explaining.

The condom vending machines will be distributed among the ITBP, BSF, Central

Industrial Security Force (CISF), Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), National

Security Guard (NSG), Assam Rifles and the Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB).

Of the 1,080 machines, the BSF and the CRPF — the two largest paramilitary

forces —will receive 300 each. The ITBP, CISF and Assam Rifles will get 125

each; and the National Security Guard, the smallest, only five.

The machines will initially be placed at battalion and sector headquarters and

later at the larger border outposts, including those along the India-Pakistan

border in Rajasthan and Jammu and Kashmir, guarded by the BSF.

Last month, the ITBP invited tenders for the supply of these machines, with a

December 22 deadline.

The catch for the suppliers is that they will need to transport and install

these machines at far-flung places in Ladakh, Arunachal Pradesh and Assam and

deep into the Thar desert.

http://www.telegraphindia.com/1100112/jsp/nation/story_11972636.jsp