Indian Army Agnipath scheme: Why age relaxation can also be a problem
Recruitment data shows that the intake of 46,000 recruits this year — that's the number specified for recruitment in the first year of the Agnipath programme — will be the lowest since 2015 for the three services together.
Moving to allay concerns and dial down anger on the streets over the short-term Agnipath recruitment scheme for the armed forces, the government announced a one-time relaxation in the upper age limit for entrants this year, raising it from 21 to 23 years, saying there had been no recruitment in the last two years.
But this one-time waiver can also become a problem.
Recruitment data shows that the intake of 46,000 recruits this year — that’s the number specified for recruitment in the first year of the Agnipath programme — will be the lowest since 2015 for the three services together.
The age relaxation for the first year will see more candidates vie for the 46,000 positions being offered after two years of zero-recruitment — the government has not mentioned or shown any willingness yet to raise this number for 2022.
According to recruitment data shared by the Ministry of Defence with Parliament in March this year, the recruitment of soldiers for the Army, below the rank of officers, through recruitment rallies in the last seven years, topped at 80,572 in 2019-2020. No recruitment has been done in the years since.
Rating: 5