In a welcome move for the Agniveers under the government's Agnipath scheme, the Centre has reserved 10 per cent posts of constables in Central Armed Police forces for ex-Agniveers. The government will also give exemption in the physical efficiency test Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) headquarters.
The CISF has also made all preparations in this regard, informed Neena Singh, Director General, CISF.
Speaking on the government's decision to recruit 10 per cent of ex-Agniveers into the Central forces, Union Minister Giriraj Singh said, "An anti-Agniveer campaign by Rahul Gandhi and 'tukde tukde' gang is going on... These people want to discredit Agniveer and mislead the youth. No scheme like Agniveer was brought so far. Agniveer is the best scheme."
The Agnipath scheme, announced on June 14, 2022, provides for the recruitment of youths between the age bracket of 17-and-half years and 21 for only four years, with a provision to retain 25 per cent of them for 15 more years. The government extended the upper age limit to 23 years later that year.
Amid row over the Agnipath scheme as the Opposition cornered the government in the recently concluded Parliament session, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh rebutted Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi's claims in the Lok Sabha on the Agnipath military recruitment scheme saying it was rolled out after taking suggestions from 158 organisations.
Singh, who intervened when Gandhi was speaking on the Motion of Thanks to the President's address, also said that an Agniveer who lays down his life in the line of duty gets a compensation of Rs 1 crore.
The Union minister asked Gandhi not to mislead Parliament and also requested Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla to expunge the former Congress president's claims on the Agnipath scheme.
Referring to the military recruitment scheme, Gandhi claimed that the government regards the Agniveers as "use-and-throw labourers" and does not even give them the status of a "shaheed (martyr)".
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