Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on June 18 demanded a rollback of the Agnipath recruitment scheme for defence services and said those who cleared physical tests in the last two years must get a chance to appear in written exams for joining the Army.
He claimed that this Agnipath scheme will "dilute" the fighting ability of soldiers. It will also render the youth jobless after a four-year stint in the armed forces that too without any security for the future, Mr. Mann said.
It is ridiculous that in the last two years, thousands of youth cleared the physical test of the armed forces but they have not been called for the written exams, he said in a statement. On the contrary, the Central government, in a "whimsical" move, introduced the Agnipath scheme which allows a short service of four years to youths in the armed forces without any pension, Mr. Mann said.
The Punjab Chief Minister said, "This is a grave injustice for the youth of the country who want to serve their motherland by joining the Indian Army." He said the Union government must take back this scheme and allow the youth, who had cleared their physical test in the last two years, to sit in the written exam.
"This will give them a fair chance to join the armed forces." "This is the need of the hour as this irrational move [Agnipath scheme] has put the country on the boil as the youth from every nook and cranny of India are agitating against this decision," Mr. Mann said.
The Punjab Chief Minister said, "This half-baked policy is absurd. It will further push the youth into a vicious cycle of unemployment and poverty which will be detrimental for unity, integrity and sovereignty of the country." Mr. Mann had on Friday also demanded an immediate rollback of the Agnipath scheme, calling it an insult to the Army and a loss for the youth.
