KANDAHAR, Afghanistan — Afghanistan is training thousands of men affiliated with local militias in hopes of giving the country's security forces a boost in their fight against a growing insurgency.

But some fear Taliban militants and common criminals have infiltrated the program.

The training of the local militia members could give Afghanistan up to 11,000 on-call policemen who officials could tap to boost ranks during times of need.

But the quality of the recruits and their effectiveness in the police force is being questioned by some.

"There are criminals and drug users among them,'' said Col. Mohammed Hussain Andiwall, a senior police official in Kandahar province who co-ordinates between the Ministry of Interior and foreign experts training the auxiliary police force.

"Our constitution does not really provide for these sort of people in our security forces,'' the grey-haired Andiwall said.

"The fact that they wear the same uniform as a regular police is very problematic.''

Ross Davies, a Canadian police officer involved in the training of the auxiliary force in Kandahar province, said despite a vetting process conducted by Afghan authorities, police trainers still "do not know really who these people are.''

"We know that we are probably training some of the bad guys,'' he said, using an expression reserved mainly for the insurgents.

The formation of the Afghanistan National Auxiliary Police, or the ANAP, reflects the growing unease of Afghan President Hamid Karzai and some of his western backers with the inability of the existing security forces to beat the resurgent Taliban rebels and other militants challenging government authority in parts of the country.

Fighting between insurgents and NATO-led and Afghan government troops has halted much needed development and reconstruction and endangered the efforts to normalize a country that once provided shelter for Osama bin Laden and his al-Qaida network.

Afghanistan, with its weak or non-existent central government, has throughout its years of war and conflict relied on its militias and warlords to serve as a region's security force. That changed with the arrival of the Taliban in 1996, which came to power with the promise to rid the country of warlords.

When Kandahar province held its first training session for the auxiliary police last month, some 200 men _ most sporting long beards and turbans _ showed up. But by the end of the 10-day course, only 77 remained.

Some were kicked out after they were found to have hashish and heroin on them. Others had marks on their hands from injecting the drugs. Others refused orders to clean toilets, make their beds or take care of common areas. Dozens went back home for a religious holiday and never returned.

The 77 who did complete the training committed to a one-year contract with the ANAP. They can join the regular police force after one year if they choose. 

The 10-day training course includes lessons on the Afghan Constitution, human rights, the use of weapons and basic police tactics. At the end of the course the recruits are given an automatic weapon and sent to their home districts.

Nearly 1,000 men have gone through the training in Kandahar province, which hopes to have 2,000 auxiliary police. The reserve force will mainly be used in provinces most affected by the insurgency, in the country's south and east.

Village elders and local strongmen keen to protect their own interests in the face of the growing insurgency are providing the men for the new force, which aims for 11,000 members by next year. The recruits will be dressed in a regular police uniform.

The auxiliary officers will receive the equivalent of C$80 a month, the same amount regular policemen receive, Zarifi said.

Gen. Nasrullah Zarifi, the commander of southern Afghanistan's police training centre, asked cadets at the end of their training in Kandahar to swear on Islam's holy book that they will serve their country and not harass its people.

Unless the recruits have the fear of God in them, there is little that Zarifi can threaten his latest batch of students with.

"They swear on the holy Qur'an that they will behave when they go to their home districts,'' he said.