Big news is coming regarding Agniveer Yojana. It is being said that the Indian Army has expressed its desire to change some of the provisions of the Agniveer Yojana. A review and survey has also been conducted with key stakeholders to recommend possible changes to the plan. Five changes have come up in this. Army has given some important points in its internal survey. This complete information has been received from military sources.
According to sources, the first point in the Army's internal survey is that to increase the percentage of Agniveers, the Army wants the number of Agniveers to remain at 60-70 per cent even after completion of four years. Only 25 percent of Agniveer will be retained in its current form. 75 percent of the amount will be waived with a lump sum payment of around Rs 12 lakh.
Another issue is to extend the service period. In this, the army also wants to increase the service period from four years to seven to eight years. Formal basic training is only nine months in the current four-year firefighter recruitment. The rest of the training is done on the job when the firefighter is assigned to the unit.
The third issue is raising the age of recruitment in technical fields. At present, the age of firemen is kept between 17 and 21.5 years. The Army is proposing to raise the age limit to 23 years for recruitment in technical arms like signals, air defense and engineers. These weapons require a long training period due to their technical nature. By the time an Agniveer develops expertise in any technical field, his service period is over and he has to leave.
The fourth issue is disability payments and assistance in finding a job after completion of service. The Army also wants ex-gratia payment for those firemen who become disabled during training. In addition, there should be a professional agency that guides the firemen on how to find employment in the future after their service period is over.
The fifth and last point is subsistence allowance. The army wants the scheme to also include a provision of subsistence allowance to the family members of an Agniveer if he dies in battle.
