Lagatar24 Desk
Patna, June 15: Aspirants protested in Bihar on Wednesday, blocking a highway in Muzaffarpur and railway tracks in Buxar, against the government’s Agnipath scheme to induct soldiers on a short-term contract into the armed forces.
They said the scheme, which was launched on Tuesday, would be detrimental to their long-term prospects because only up to 25% of the recruits or Agniveers under the scheme would be paid on a monthly basis.
Similar scenes were seen at Chakkar Chowk, a half-kilometer from Chakkar Maidan, where army recruitment rallies are held, near the city’s railway station.
The demonstrators claimed they expected regular recruitment rallies to restart after two years, but were instead offered this scheme. Following the commencement of the coronavirus epidemic two years ago, regular recruitment rallies were suspended, but have not resumed. Protests had erupted in various cities around the country in recent months as a result of this.
Notably, the Agnipath initiative has been dubbed ‘historic’ by the government, which has announced that roughly 45,000 personnel will be recruited into the army, navy, and air force, primarily on a short-term contract basis. This will allow the military to have a more young profile while also lowering salary and pension costs. According to Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, both men and women are eligible. Recruitment will commence in the next 90 days, according to the announcement. By July 2023, the first batch will be ready.
