DGR security agency scheme — who can open one, what it takes, jobs for ESM

The short answer

The scheme has two doors. For retired officers: own a security agency, get empanelled with DGR, and compete for PSU/government contracts through GeM. For JCOs and jawans: jobs as security supervisors and guards — because the guards in this scheme must themselves be ex-servicemen, and can serve up to age 65. Everything below is from the DESW guidelines of 13 May 2021 (No. 28(75)/2020-D(Res-1)), which we read page by page.

Around 60,000 skilled Armed Forces personnel retire every year, and DESW calls this scheme — running since 1992 — its "flagship project that generates maximum employment for ESM". The structure: an ESM officer as proprietor, other ESM as supervisors and guards, and DGR as the sponsoring authority between agencies and principal employers.

Door 1 — owning an agency (officers)

Who: ex-servicemen Class-1 Gazetted Commissioned officers, as proprietorship concerns. Two other categories exist: state-government-owned ESM corporations, and continuation by the widow of an ESM officer who died while availing the scheme.
When: apply for empanelment before turning 60.
Where: empanelment is state-wise — one state only; a change of state is permitted once, and only if no benefit was taken in the first state.
No dual income: the officer must not have availed any other employment/self-employment/resettlement benefit through DESW (ECHS/KSB/RSB/ZSB/DGR job or scheme), must not be re-employed elsewhere once the contract is awarded, and gives an affidavit to resign from any such job on taking up the contract. A false declaration means dis-empanelment and cancellation of all contracts.

The paperwork that decides everything

PSARA licence for the entire state, in the ESM officer's own name — the guidelines are explicit that a partial-state licence does not qualify.
PSARA-compliant office — with a notarised rent agreement submitted within 30 days of the first contract (own/spouse/dependent premises need notarised supporting documents instead).
Affidavit in the prescribed format (Appendix B of the guidelines).
GeM vendor code — registration on the GeM portal as a vendor is mandatory; the code is endorsed on the empanelment certificate, and contract tenders run through GeM.
The empanelment certificate is issued for five years, or until the proprietor turns 60, whichever is earlier — and it is valid only for earning contracts through DGR.

Door 2 — working as a guard or supervisor (JCOs/OR)

Guards and supervisors at the principal employer's complex must be ESM (per the DOP&T notification); a maximum of 10% non-ESM personnel is permitted — beyond that, the agency faces dis-empanelment. Female guards, where requisitioned, are over and above that 10%.
Age: up to 65 years, in consonance with the PSARA Act 2005.
Supervisors: deployed compulsorily — not below one for every 20 guards.
Your rights on paper: every guard gets a written Letter of Appointment (its terms bind the agency too), and a copy of the latest DGR wage notification must be displayed at every worksite and the agency office. If you are working as a guard, you are entitled to see what the notified wage is.
Training is per Section 9 of the PSARA Act 2005.

What nobody should promise you

The number of guards allotted to an agency depends on how many agencies are empanelled and what requisitions come from principal employers in that state — regulated by DGR, with tendering on GeM. Empanelment is a licence to compete, not a promise of contracts. The state-wise status and waiting lists are published on dgrindia.gov.in — check them before betting your savings on a quick contract.

Questions and answers

What is a DGR security agency?

A private security agency owned by an ex-servicemen officer, empanelled by the Directorate General Resettlement, which gets sponsored for security contracts of PSUs, banks and government bodies. The guards and supervisors it employs must themselves be ex-servicemen (up to 10% non-ESM are permitted). The scheme has run since 1992 and DESW calls it the flagship project generating maximum employment for ESM.

Can a JCO or jawan open a DGR security agency?

Under the DGR scheme, no — the 2021 guidelines open individual agency empanelment to ex-servicemen Class-1 Gazetted Commissioned officers, as proprietorship concerns. JCOs and other ranks join the scheme as security supervisors and guards. Opening a private security agency outside the DGR scheme, under PSARA alone, is a separate matter with its own rules.

What documents does DGR empanelment need?

Per the 13 May 2021 guidelines: a PSARA licence for the entire state in the ESM officer's name (a partial-state licence does not qualify), an affidavit in the prescribed format, proof of a PSARA-compliant office, and a GeM vendor code. The empanelment certificate is issued for five years or until the proprietor turns 60, whichever is earlier.

Up to what age can an ex-serviceman work as a security guard under the scheme?

The upper age limit for a security guard and supervisor is 65 years, in consonance with the PSARA Act 2005, per the official guidelines. Supervisors are deployed at not below one for every 20 guards.

Does DGR guarantee an agency will get contracts?

No. Allotment of guards to a proprietor depends on the number of empanelled agencies and the requisitions received from principal employers in the state, regulated by DGR — and the contract process runs through the GeM portal. Empanelment is a licence to compete, not a promise of business.

DGR security agency scheme — how it actually works