EXCLUSIVE | Need For Agnipath Scheme Was Felt After Kargil War: Lt. Gen. Anil Puri

Lieutenant General Puri said “this scheme has been brought to make the army young”.

New Delhi: Throwing light on the idea behind the launch of the Agnipath recruitment scheme, Department of Military Affairs Additional Secretary Lieutenant General Anil Puri on Tuesday said the need was felt after the 1999 Kargil War with Pakistan and added the country’s future is connected with the youth. “This scheme is needed in the army not from today, but the need was felt after the Kargil war. The Kargil War Committee had then said that the army in our country has a very important contribution in maintaining peace on the border,” Lieutenant General Puri told ABP News in an exclusive conversation.

“Our average age today is 32 years, but we were then asked to reduce that age to 26 years. The only motive behind bringing this scheme is to ensure more jawans come under this. By 2030, 50 percent of our country’s population will be below 25 years of age. Our Indian Army should be the reflection of such a big demographic dividend,” he added.

Lieutenant General Puri said “this scheme has been brought to make the army young”.

“Secondly, the generation before us was not so friendly with technology while the next generation would be far ahead of us. We can benefit from their understanding of technology. They can use this understanding to protect the country. A single person is not the brain behind this scheme, but this is the government’s approach in toto. The work on this scheme was not done in a day, but it was carefully thought in the last two years,” he added.

Responding to a poser on how is the Agnipath scheme beneficial, Lieutenant General Puri said: “We wanted to recruit the youth between 17 to 21 years of age under this scheme, but in view of the recent demand of the people the age was increased to 23 years the day before yesterday because youth is the future of our country and we are connected with it.”

“25 percent of the youth joining under the Agnipath scheme will continue to serve the country, while the remaining 75 percent will learn skills before they depart. The army training will also prove to be very helpful for the youth to move forward,” he added.

When asked what the youth will do after having completed four years of service, Lieutenant General Puri said this opportunity will make the youngsters more disciplined so that they lead a better life in future.

“The youth coming after finishing Class 10 will be given the certificate of Class 12. On the other hand, the youth will after four years imbibe discipline, which will make their future better and more confident,” Lieutenant General Puri.

“Most of the youth, who join the army, come from villages. They will be able to deposit Rs 12 lakh within four years. They can start something of their own with this money. They can even continue farming after purchasing a new tractor. The youth can do employment with Rs 12 lakh,” he added.

Earlier on June 14, the Union Cabinet approved a recruitment scheme called Agnipath for the Indian youth to serve in the armed forces. The scheme allows patriotic and motivated youth to serve in the armed forces for a period of four years.

The youth joining the armed forces under Agnipath scheme will be known as Agniveers.

The youth in the age bracket of 17-and-half to 23 will be recruited for the armed forces under this scheme.

The Agniveers will be able to apply voluntarily for the regular cadre after four years. Up to 25 percent of the youth shall be selected from a particular batch based on merit and organisation requirement.