Bengaluru: Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman speaks during an interactive session with industry leaders and businessmen on the Union Budget 2024, in Bengaluru, Sunday, July 28, 2024. (Photo: PTI)
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Wednesday said that the controversial Agniveer scheme will help to keep the armed forces of India battle-ready and young as she hit back at the Opposition for ‘politicising’ the issue.
The Finance Minister made the remarks during the general discussion on the Union Budget in Rajya Sabha. She was replying to former finance minister P Chidambaram’s comments. “One of the expected outcomes of the scheme is that armed forces will have a much younger force by recruiting those in the age group of 17-21 years,” Sitharaman said dismissing the Opposition’s piling criticism on the scheme.
She said the scheme was introduced following consultation and approval of the armed forces. The contentious scheme has been at the centre of a political slugfest between the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party and the Congress-led Opposition.
During the Lok Sabha elections, Congress had promised in its manifesto to scrap the scheme if it came to power. On Monday, Leader of Opposition, Rahul Gandhi criticised the Narendra Modi government for failing the Agniveers and other social groups through its Budget policy.
During the discussion on Budget in Lok Sabha, Gandhi expressed his disappointment about the Budget neglecting pension for the Agniveers of the armed forces.
What is the Agniveer policy in the armed forces? Of late, the controversial Agniveer scheme has garnered a fresh spotlight after the newly formed Narendra Modi coalition government found itself in disagreement with the policy. As the new government assumed office after the June 4 Lok Sabha elections result, National Democratic Alliance allies Janata Dal (United) and Union Minister Chirag Paswan have sought a review of the policy.
With this, the Opposition has also regularly raised the issue as it seeks to garner public support to bolster its presence in various states and Union territories in the coming elections.
The short-term program is aimed at inducting youth into the armed forces for four years with a 25 per cent retention scope. Due to several factors such as no pension policy, the scheme has been heavily criticised by the Opposition for failing to provide “economic and social security” to the soldiers.
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