Centre Steadfast On No Major Shakeup In Agniveer, But Minor Tweaks Still On The Cards

Although no major shake-up of the Agnipath scheme is planned, some minor tweaks to improve the Agniveer scheme are on the cards.

According to a report by India Today, the centre plans to make minor adjustments to the Agnipath scheme, including increasing the retention rate for Agniveers after their four-year term and revising their emoluments and benefits.

In the Agnipath scheme, recruits aged 17 to 21 are inducted into the forces. They undergo a nine-month basic training program before being assigned to units.

In these units, they serve for four years (including the nine-month basic training), after which only 25 per cent of the Agniveers are retained for full-time service. The remaining 75 per cent are let go with a lump sum of 12-13 lakhs.

Instead of the current 25 per cent retention rate, plans are underway to increase it to 50 per cent.

The report, quoting a defence source, states, "one-fourth is too low a number to be retained to maintain the desired combat strength on the ground," adding that "the Army has recommended that the percentage of Agniveers retained should increase to around 50 per cent at the end of the four years."

This comes after the Army submitted recommendations to the government for changes to the scheme.

As already reported, apart from these minor adjustments, there are no plans for a major overhaul of the scheme. It has faced significant opposition since its introduction in 2022.

The Congress party has even called for the scrapping of the scheme.

Major protests and riots occurred in the northern states of Haryana, Bihar, and Uttar Pradesh just days after its announcement. Even the allies of the current BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government opposed the scheme and asked for changes.