Garhwal Post Bureau
Dehradun, 17 Sep: The Congress party once again mounted a sharp attack on the Union Government over the Agniveer recruitment scheme and it has described it as a policy that plays with the future of the country’s youth. Addressing a joint press conference at the state Congress headquarters, PCC Chief Ganesh Godiyal, campaign committee chairman Pritam Singh, and election management committee chairman Harak Singh Rawat, jointly criticised the scheme and demanded its immediate withdrawal.
Ganesh Godiyal alleged that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has deceived the youth by introducing a system that restricts permanent employment opportunities in the armed forces. He said that while inflation is at its peak and the ordinary families are struggling to meet basic needs, the PM is celebrating the festivals with extravagance, ignoring the plight of the people. He argued that the Agniveer scheme reduces the dignity of military service to a short-term contract, depriving young recruits of long-term security, pensions and social protection.
Pritam Singh claimed that the impact of the scheme is particularly severe in Uttarakhand, a state with a proud military tradition where thousands of families have depended on army service for generations. He said that the youth in the hill districts prepare for years with the hope of securing permanent jobs in the armed forces, but under the Agniveer arrangement most careers end after four years, leaving them to re-enter the job market at the age of 21 or 22. He added that the demand of the youth is for permanent employment, not temporary service, and questioned the absence of a clear roadmap for the 75 per cent of recruits who will not be absorbed into regular service.
Harak Singh Rawat said that mere announcements of reservation or preference in other departments are not enough and demanded that the government publish actual figures of permanent appointments given to Agniveers after their service. He stressed that Uttarakhand, being a military-dominated state, deserves a special recruitment policy to safeguard the aspirations of its youth. He warned that the scheme undermines the honour associated with military service and should not be used as a tool to manipulate employment statistics.
Col Ram Ratan Negi (Retd), president of the ex-servicemen cell of the party, presented data claiming that the annual recruitment has fallen drastically from 80,000 to 47,000, and with only 25 per cent absorption, barely 12,000 youths are securing permanent jobs each year compared to over one lakh earlier. He demanded clarity from the government on what concrete facilities are being provided to Agniveers after four years, including higher education, government jobs, technical training, self-employment and bank loans.
The Congress leaders reiterated that their opposition is not to the army or to the soldiers but to a recruitment system that creates uncertainty for the youth. They demanded transparency in the recruitment process, timely filling of vacant posts and adequate opportunities for regular enlistment. They also called for a rehabilitation package for those exiting after four years. The party insisted that the government must guarantee a secure and dignified future for Agniveers, stating that the youth of the country do not want four years of employment, they want a safe and honourable future. The army cannot be treated as a laboratory. The government must provide a clear guarantee for the future of Agniveers.
Among those present during the press conference were former MLA Jot Singh Gunsola, state Mahila Congress President Jyoti Rautela, Congress’s state spokesperson Dr Pratima Singh and several other party leaders.
