IAF recruitment under new scheme on June 24

NEW DELHI: The Indian Air Force will be the first service to recruit young men under the Agnipath model for the short-term induction of soldiers in the military, with the army and navy also finalising their recruitment calendar, officials familiar with the development said on Friday.

IAF chief Air Chief Marshal VR Chaudhari said that the Air Force would kick off selection under the new model on June 24. The armed forces plan to recruit 46,000 Agniveers in the age group of 17 and a half and 23 years this year.

The upper age limit was 21 when the scheme was announced on June 14, but the government on Thursday announced a two-year age relaxation as a one-time waiver given that the process was stalled due to the pandemic.

In a virtual address, the IAF chief said, “Happy to announce that the upper age limit (for recruitment) has been revised to 23 years. This will benefit the youth. The recruitment process for IAF will begin on June 24.”

Army chief General Manoj Pande said the army’s first Agniveers would start training by the year-end. The army was beginning to feel the strain of a manpower crunch stemming from the Covid-induced recruitment freeze. It is currently short of around 125,000 soldiers in the personnel below officer rank cadre. It has an authorised strength of 1.2 million soldiers.

“The Indian Navy is ready to welcome the first batch of Agniveers in our service, for which the recruitment process will start very soon. We call upon all young men and women of our country to join the Indian Navy as Agniveers and contribute to national security and nation-building,” the navy said.

Agniveers will be assigned front-line duties in the three services. They will serve in forwarding areas along the borders with China and Pakistan, at premier air bases, on board warships and submarines, and handle modern weapons and systems.