Seventy-five percent of Agniveers who are not enrolled permanently after their four-year tenure will be given an option to extend their service by two more years, announced Chief of Defence Staff General NS Raja Subramani on Wednesday.
After the extension is completed, the willing Agniveers will get another opportunity to join the armed forces as regular soldiers, provided they meet the prescribed selection criteria, added Subramani.
Agniveers are recruited into the armed forces under the Agnipath short-term recruitment scheme. Under the scheme, citizens aged between 17 and a half and 21 years are eligible to apply for a four-year term in the military with a provision that 25% of them will be retained for permanent service and will be required to serve for a minimum of 15 years.
The introduction of the Agnipath scheme on June 14, 2022, had triggered protests in several states as aspirants demanded permanent recruitment with pension benefits.
Agniveers are not entitled to pension and emoluments on the completion of the four years of service and are instead offered a lump-sum package.
The announcement on Wednesday came as around 18,000 Agniveers from the first batch are expected to complete their four-year tenure and exit in December. There are around three lakh Agniveers in the defence forces currently, reported The Hindu.
Subramani said that Agniveers who opt…
Source: Scroll.in
