New Delhi, Aug 8 (Bureau) Congress MP Hibi Eden on Monday said the Agnipath Scheme for recruitments to the armed forces will not resolve the unemployment problem, and instead “dilute” the efficiency of Indian forces. Raising the issue in the Zero Hour, Eden said, “The Agnipath Scheme which was announced by the government of India, Indian Armed Forces will recruit young people from 17.5 to 21 as Agneeveers for a period of four years including six months of training. “We all know that serving in the armed forces demands longer training to guard the country, life of fellow soldiers and themselves. Six months training is inadequate to meet the challenges of the modern battlefield.”
The Ernakulam MP said: “We are at a juncture where we need to strengthen armed forces equipping them with technological advancement and professionalism as we are facing severe threats from our neighbouring countries in the recent scenario… Any move to dilute the efficiency of the Indian Army will compromise national security.” “Armed forces of our country have been the pride of the nation”. The MP added that “Agnipath or Agniveers will not be an alternative for unemployment”. “When Narendra Modi came, he promised two crore jobs, this is not satisfying,” he said adding that they will also not get allowances, or ex-servicemen status.
Under the Agnipath Scheme, the youth aged 17 and a half and 21 will be recruited in the Army, Navy and Air Force on contractual basis for four years. Protests had broken out across the country immediately after the scheme was announced. According to a reply by Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw, in a written reply to Rajya Sabha recently, he said over 2,000 trains were cancelled and Railways suffered a loss of over Rs 259 crore during violent protests against the scheme in June.