17 May 2006  IANS, New Delhi:

The Indian Army is short of a staggering 11,256 officers – 27 percent of the sanctioned strength – of the rank of lieutenant colonel and below, parliament was informed Wednesday.

"There is no shortage in the ranks of colonel and above," Defence Minister Pranab Mukherjee said in a written reply in the Rajya Sabha.

"The main reasons for shortage in the army is non-availability of sufficient number of suitable candidates meeting the army's laid down criteria for selection.

"To improve the situation, constant efforts are made to make the army an attractive career. A sustained image projection campaign through print and electronic media has also been launched," he said

http://www.newkerala.com/news2.php?action=fullnews&id=60716