Kalinga Utkal Defence Academy: How Army men use their leave and salaries to train India's next soldiers

Kalinga Utkal Defence Academy

In small towns and villages across India, a common dream burns bright: to wear the nation's uniform. Every morning, countless young men and women lace up their shoes, run on dusty roads, and push their limits, hoping for a chance to serve in the Armed Forces. But for many, this dream hits a wall—not because of a lack of will, but because of a lack of guidance and money for proper training.

In the Khaira block of Odisha’s Balasore district, three men in uniform saw this problem firsthand and decided to break that wall down. Their simple belief? A young person's future should not depend on their wallet.

This belief led to the Kalinga Utkal Defence Academy, a unique free training centre run by serving and retired Army and CRPF personnel. The founders—Amulya Bindhani, Mayur Das, and Bijay Pradhan—had watched too many hopeful youngsters fail entrance exams after acing physical tests, all due to no access to coaching.

"We saw motivation alone wasn't enough. These kids from villages and remote areas need direction, discipline, and proper training," says Mayur Kumar Das, a CRPF jawan in an interview.

So, in 2021, they turned their leave periods into lesson plans. Using their own salaries to fund the academy, they started with 40 students. Today, over 70 trainees learn here, and more than 40 have successfully joined the Army and police forces.

The model is built on personal sacrifice. Physical training is held at dawn on a local school ground. Afternoon classes for written exams take place in a rented room. All coaching is completely free.

If trainees can afford it, they pay for their own food and stay. But for those who can't, the academy covers the cost. The trainees even live upstairs at founder Bijay Pradhan's house, where his mother, Aarti, cares for them like her own.

The most inspiring teachers here are the soldiers themselves. All physical trainers are serving Army personnel who dedicate their precious leave time to coach. Even former trainees, now posted in uniform, return on leave to guide the next batch.

This cycle of giving back has grown the academy into a collective effort of 13 defence personnel and four teachers.

The Kalinga Utkal Defence Academy stands as a powerful reminder: sometimes, the strongest defence of a nation's future begins not with a policy, but with the quiet, determined payback of its own soldiers.