New Delhi, June 24 (agency)
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP Varun Gandhi, who has been continuously raising questions on the central government’s new “Agneepath scheme” for recruitment in defense services, said on Friday that “Agniveer” who join the army under this scheme would If he is not entitled to pension, then he is also ready to give up his pension as an MP. He raised the question before the MPs and MLAs that why not all public representatives give up their pension and ensure the facility of pension for “Agniveers”.
It is to be known that “Agneepath Yojana” is a new scheme brought by the Ministry of Defense for recruitment to various posts in the three wings of the Indian Army, Army, Air Force and Navy. The youth recruited in this will be known as “Agniveer” and will have a tenure of four years. He will not be entitled to pension after retirement. Now all the recruitment in the army will be done only under the “Agneepath scheme”. Since the announcement of this new model of recruitment, violent protests have been witnessed in many parts of the country against it. Varun Gandhi said in a tweet, “Agniveer who has served short term is not entitled to pension, then why this ‘convenience’ to public representatives? If the national defenders do not have the right to pension, then I am also ready to give up my own pension. Can’t we MLAs and MPs give up their pension and ensure that Agniveers get pension?” Gandhi has been raising his voice against the scheme even before this. He has also written a letter to Defense Minister Rajnath Singh against the provisions of the scheme. The “Agneepath Yojana” was announced on June 14. In this, there is a provision to recruit youth in the army for only four years between the age of 17 and a half years to 21 years. After four years, the service of only 25 percent of these youth will be regularised. After protests in many states against this scheme, the government has recently increased the upper age limit for recruitment to 23 years in 2022.
