Modi defends Agnipath scheme, says it aims to rejuvenate armed forces

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday defended the Agnipath scheme amid fresh calls for scrapping the military recruitment plan that cuts tenure and offers fewer service benefits, saying it aims to rejuvenate the armed forces and keep them continually fit for war. He said an important dream was fulfilled through the scheme.

“The Agnipath scheme will increase the strength of the country and the capable youth will also come forward to serve the motherland. Announcements have also been made to give priority to Agniveers in the private sector and paramilitary forces,” he said in his speech after visiting the war memorial at Dras to pay tribute to the men who laid their lives fighting Pakistani intruders in Kargil in 1999.

The Opposition Congress has repeatedly called for scrapping the scheme, which sparked protests in 2022. The scheme was designed to lower the average age of India’s armed forces. Recruitments under it are done on four-year contracts. Only 25% of the recruits will be retained at the end of their terms. Janata Dal (United), a key ally of the Bharatiya Janata Party-led Union government, has also called for a review of the Agniveer scheme.

Modi said it was unfortunate that some people have politicised such a sensitive issue related to national security. “Some people are playing politics of lies on this reform of the Army for their personal interests. These are the same people who weakened our armed forces by committing scams worth thousands of crores of rupees in the armed forces. These are the same people who wanted the air force to never get modern fighter jets. These are the same people who made preparations to lock the Tejas fighter plane in a box.”

Ahead of the first session of the 18th Lok Sabha last month, the Congress demanded the scrapping of the Agnipath scheme, questioning the rationale behind it. The Congress called for the reinstatement of the old long-term military recruitment process.

The demand came against the backdrop of media reports that suggested that an internal survey of the military has proposed some changes in the scheme, such as extending the tenure of the Agniveers, increasing the retention rate of recruited soldiers from 25% to around 60-70%, and increasing the age for the induction of personnel in technical services.

The Congress has accused the government of passing the bills including that on the Agnipath scheme without proper discussion. Congress leader Rahul Gandhi called the scheme a risk to national security in a letter to President Draupadi Murmu, requesting her intervention in the matter. In May, Gandhi said Modi wants two types of martyrs—one who gets compensation, pension, and martyr status, and the second (enrolled under the Agniveer scheme), who is poor and gets nothing. He called it an insult to the Indian Army.

Gandhi said Modi turned soldiers into labourers while promising to scrap the Agniveer scheme if the Congress was voted to power. He maintained it was Modi’s scheme and that the Army never wanted it.

Two Angineer batches have completed their training since the scheme was implemented in September 2022. The government has repeatedly defended the scheme, saying it was introduced to lower the age profile of personnel. Under the scheme, personnel in the age bracket of 17.5 to 21 years are recruited in the armed forces and 25% of each batch will be promoted and retained for 15 years.