TBILISI. Oct 3 (Interfax-AVN) - The autumn draft plant in Georgia will increase by nearly 40 percent this year, Koba Ugrelidze, chief of the draft coordination department in the Georgian president's regional policy and control service, said on Friday.
"During the autumn draft that starts in Georgia on November 15, 10,000 people are to be recruited for active duty service, which is an increase from last year's autumn draft plan which amounted to 6,200 people," Ugrelidze told Interfax-Military News Agency.
The plan for the upcoming draft is not yet approved, as law- enforcement agencies are to submit updated requests for active- duty personnel before the end of October, he said.
According to Ugrelidze, the plan of the spring draft that ended in August amounted to 7,650 people, but the figure was exceeded.
"As many as 5,250 raw recruits were sent to units of the Defense Ministry, State Border Guard Department, Interior Ministry Force and state guard service. Another 2,519 potential draftees paid the official fee of GEL100 (about USD100) and were transferred to the reserve," he said.
"The new parliament is likely to get a proposal about canceling the fees before the spring draft of 2004," Ugrelidze said.