Agnipath: Pros & Cons

Armed Forces Recruitments

- Manoj Joshi

The Narendra Modi government added a touch of Bollywood when it named a new major recruitment scheme for the armed forces 'Agnipath'. Announced on June 14 by defence minister Rajnath Singh in the presence of the three service chiefs, the scheme aims to make the Indian armed forces a much younger, leaner fighting force. Under it, the government will recruit Indian youth between the ages of 17-and-a-half and 21 into the armed forces where they will get six months' training and then provide 3.5 years of service. At the end of four years, 25 per cent of these young people, the 'Agniveers', will be absorbed into the force to serve another 15 years while the other 75 per cent would return to civilian life with a severance pay of Rs 11.71 lakh, partly paid out of their salary, and none of the other benefits-like pension. Agnipath will recruit 46,000 young men this year and for the next four years will recruit 50,000 annually.

The scheme will have significant implications on the way the Indian military will be manned in the future. It does seek to make the best of fiscal prudence-over time, it is expected to take the bulk of the regular jobs of the military that had a pension and contractualise them. Besides the savings in its manpower budget, the military will get a more youthful profile in the bargain. The jury, though, is out on whether it is a masterstroke or will turn out to be a body blow to the army's fighting capabilities. As for the ones to be relieved, the experience and severance pay should give them a leg up to handle life onwards. Finding them alternative job avenues is also on the radar.