India to have new military recruitment scheme 'Agnipath'? Details inside-

New Delhi, June 4: The new Agnipath recruitment scheme for the induction of soldiers in three defence services is likely to be approved by Union Cabinet soon. A high-level meet including top government functionaries and top military leaders is scheduled to be held today to discuss the final contours of the Agnipath recruitment scheme under which soldiers in three services would be recruited for four-year tenures.

 

Notably, the new military recruitment scheme is part of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s major reform agenda. According to the reports, this move is expected to reduce the expenditure and age profile of the defence forces. The Agnipath scheme is a new name given to the ‘Tour of Duty entry scheme’ by the Indian Army.

 

In order to do so, a presentation on the scheme, planned by the Department of Military Affairs, presently led by Additional Secretary Lt Gen Anil Puri, is scheduled to be made to the government in the meeting that is going to take place today.

 

As per the initial plans, after the initial training of around six months, around 20-25 percent of recruited youth known as 'Agniveers' would be given longer tenures while others would be released with a severance package which would be around Rs 10-12 lakh.

 

If the project moves as per plan, the recruitment process for the first batch of Agniveers may start in the next three to four months. The forces will also have the option of recruiting specialists for specific tasks who would perform the desired role.

 

During the COVID-19 pandemic, the recruitment of soldiers in the armed forces had been halted. As per the plans, the soldiers relieved from the service would be provided assistance in getting placed in civilian jobs. A number of corporates have shown interest in availing services of such 'Agniveers' as they would be benefitted from hiring such trained military-trained disciplined manpower.