- SSB is one of India’s Central Armed Police Forces (CAPFs).
- It is entrusted with guarding the country’s border with Nepal and Bhutan.
- It was established in 1963 following Sino-Indian War.
- It was formerly known as Special Service Bureau.
- It is under administrative control of the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA).
- Its headquarters are in New Delhi and motto is “Service, Security and Brotherhood”.
- It has specialist jurisdictions for national border patrol, security, and integrity.
How SSB was formed?
After the Chinese incursion of 1962, it was felt that the borders of the country could not be protected with the force of rifles alone. The government felt the backing and resolute will of a committed border population together with an in-depth understanding and familiarity of the terrain as well as the culture and ethos of the border population was required to defend the borders effectively.
As a result, a unique, unconventional yet specialized organization, which would function in the far, flung, vulnerable, strategic, remote, climatically and topographically difficult border areas and motivate the border population across several states towards the cause of protecting India’s national sovereignty was conceived as Special Service Bureau in 1962 and eventually created in March 1963. The SSB was renamed as the Sashastra Seema Bal in January 2001. SSB is part of the para-military force of India.