Fact Check: Govt Busts ‘Fake’ Letter By Defence Ministry Being Circulated Regarding Agnipath Scheme

The hoax letter claimed that “ORs attested after 1 Jan 2019 & those not promoted to a substantive rank of Naik or equivalent on 1 July 2022 are to be kept under Agnipath Scheme.” 

The 'fake' letter was being circulated in the name of Defence Ministry regarding Agnipath Scheme

Source : Twitter/@PIBFactCheck

New Delhi: The Press Information Bureau on Monday flagged a letter that was being circulated as being issued by the Ministry of Defence as “fake”. The hoax letter claimed that “ORs attested after 1 Jan 2019 & those not promoted to a substantive rank of Naik or equivalent on 1 July 2022 are to be kept under Agnipath Scheme.” 

The Press Information Bureau in a tweet said that the letter was "fake" and was that "Defence Ministry has not issued this letter." 

Meanwhile on Monday, recruitment rally notification was issued by the Army which stated that “registration will be opened will be opened from July 2022 onwards by respective AROs for Agniveer General Duty, Agniveer Technical, Agniveer Technical (Aviation/Ammunition) Examiner, Agniveer Clerk/Store Keeper Technical, Agniveer Tradesman 10th pass and Agniveer Tradesman 8th pass.” 

Claim: ORs attested after 1 Jan 2019 & those not promoted to a substantive rank of Naik or equivalent on 1 July 2022 are to be kept under #AgnipathScheme #PIBFactCheck

▶️This letter is #Fake

▶️@DefenceMinIndia has not issued this letter pic.twitter.com/79SEUU1hHv

— PIB Fact Check (@PIBFactCheck) June 20, 2022

On Sunday, Lieutenant General Anil Puri clarified that the new recruitment scheme for the armed forces will not be rolled back while the three military services announced a broad schedule for recruitment in the respective armed forces. 

While the armed forces are announcing schedules for recruitment under the new scheme, army aspirants in several parts of the country continued to stage protests against it for the fifth day today. They are unhappy with the short duration of the service after which 75 percent will be retired without any pension or social security.