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A major change has been made in the Agneepath scheme started for the recruitment of soldiers in all three branches of the army. After this change, 75 percent of firefighters will get an additional service extension of two years.
According to the old rules, after completion of the four-year tenure, only 25% of Agniveers were made permanent and there was a provision for the remaining 75% to be taken out of service.
The Defense Ministry has said in a statement, "On the basis of merit, 25% of the Agniveers will be given regular jobs in the Defense Forces as per the already decided provision. The remaining Agniveers will be offered an additional service period of two years based on their wish."
"After completion of additional service period of two years, all Agniveers will be inducted as regular soldiers subject to their willingness and fulfilling the selection criteria."
The Union Cabinet on Wednesday approved this change in the Agneepath scheme. This has been called 'Second Tour of Duty'.
During the cabinet briefing, Chief of Defense Staff General NS Raja Subramani said, "As you know, 25% of Agniveers will be inducted into the forces on the basis of merit. Earlier in this plan, there was a provision that 75% of Agniveers would return to civilian life."
He said, "However, now the remaining 75% Agniveers will be given an additional service period of two years under this scheme. On completion of this period, all the interested Agniveers will be inducted into the armed forces after selection on the basis of fixed criteria."
After this decision of the Cabinet, Defense Minister Rajnath Singh wrote in a post on X, "This will also give an opportunity to all those interested Agniveers, who fulfill the selection criteria, to join as regular soldiers after completion of four/six years of service period."
He wrote, "This decision is in line with the long-term structural reforms in our defense forces aimed at creating a younger, more fit and ready force for future challenges."
According to Rajnath Singh, "This is not just a recruitment policy, but an important step towards preparing the Indian Army according to the changing nature of war."
Agneepath Scheme
Agneepath Scheme is a scheme launched about four years ago by the Ministry of Defense for recruitment to the posts of soldiers, airmen and sailors in the three wings of the Indian Army, Army, Air Force and Navy respectively.
According to the current scheme, after four years only 25% of the firefighters are given permanent jobs on the basis of merit.
After the announcement on Wednesday, the tenure of Agniveer has been increased from four years to six years.
If your age is between 17.5 years to 21 years, then you can apply to be recruited under this scheme.
Are officers of the three services also recruited under the Agneepath scheme?
No, this scheme is not for officer rank. There are different procedures for their recruitment.
Are the working conditions and allowances for soldiers recruited under the Agneepath scheme different from other soldiers?
All three parts of the army have said that the working conditions and all types of allowances are the same as before. Agniveer gets all the allowances related to ration, uniform and travel etc.
However, firefighters do not get dearness allowance and military service pay.
Will Agniveer, who leaves the army after six years of service, be entitled to any kind of pension, gratuity, canteen facility and health facilities?
The Army has announced that while in service, the fire fighters will get the health and canteen facilities available while in the army.
But after completing six years of service, they will neither be entitled to any kind of pension or gratuity nor will they be able to avail medical and canteen facilities available to ex-servicemen.
