NIOS to launch special programme for recruits; finance ministry holds meet
NEW DELHI: In an attempt to allay apprehensions about the Agnipath scheme for short-term induction of soldiers into the armed forces, the Union ministry of education on Thursday said it will start a special programme through the National Institute of Open Schooling (NIOS) to help recruits obtain Class 12 certificates.
In a separate development, the Union ministry of finance held a meeting with several banks and financial institutions to identify ways in which they can support Agniveers on completion of their tenure.
The Union Cabinet on Tuesday approved Agnipath, a scheme for the Indian youth to serve in the armed forces; those selected under this scheme will be called Agniveers. The scheme seeks to recruit soldiers, including women, for only four years with a provision to retain 25% of them in the regular cadre for 15 more years after another round of screening. Agniveers shall be recruited between the ages of 17.5 and 21 years.
Candidates who have passed Class 10 can apply for the recruitment process.
On Thursday, the education ministry said that under its new initiative, NIOS will develop customised courses to help Agniveers who have cleared matriculation obtain Class 12 certificates. The certificates to be issued by NIOS will be recognised for higher education and employment.
“The Department of School Education & Literacy through its autonomous institution, the NIOS, is instituting a special programme in consultation with the defence authorities to enable those Agniveers who are 10th class pass to further their education and obtain a 12th class pass certificate by developing customised courses that are not only current but very relevant to their area of service,” the ministry said in a statement.
Oppn, JD(U) seek a rethink on scheme
Several opposition parties on Thursday stepped up their attack on the government over the Agnipath scheme amid protests against it in several parts of the country — including Bihar, Haryana and Rajasthan — and demanded that it be scrapped. The Janata Dal (United), an ally of the BJP, also sought a rethink of the scheme.
The Congress said the scheme carries multiple risks and subverts the longstanding traditions and ethos of the armed forces. “There is no guarantee that the soldiers recruited under the scheme will be better trained and motivated to defend the country,” said former Union minister P Chidambaram.
“With regard to the Agneepath scheme, the fear of dissatisfaction, despair and bleak future (unemployment) is clearly visible in the minds of the youth and students of the country, including Bihar. The central government should immediately reconsider the Agniveer scheme...,” JD(U) president Rajiv Ranjan Singh tweeted in Hindi.