Agitators who indulged in goondaism, burning trains and buses, are not the people we would like to have in the armed forces as we are not interested in recruiting hooligans responsible for the violence, said General VP Malik, the Army chief during the Kargil war in 1999, amid arson across the country.
Malik stressed the fact that the Indian Army is a volunteer force and not a welfare organisation, while underscoring that only the best people who can fight and defend the country are recruited.
“We have to understand that the armed forces are a volunteer force. It is not a welfare organisation and it has to have the best people who can fight for the country, who can defend the country. Those people who indulged in goondaism, burning trains and buses, those are not the people we would like to have in the armed forces,” the former Army chief told NDTV in an interview on Friday.
The Centre’s Agnipath recruitment scheme for Indian youth in the armed forces, termed a historic and transformative measure, has met an unprecedented level of agitations and protests in several states across India.
Massive protests erupted in Bihar, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Telangana and some other states against the recruitment scheme, over concerns of job security and other issues. However, many states have also announced schemes where such ‘Agniveers’, as the beneficiaries of this move are dubbed, can get advantage.
Malik, however, empathised with those candidates who could not complete the test while the recruitment programme was suspended and will not clear the age eligibility criterion once the process resumed. “Some of those people will now be overage. They will not be eligible for the Agnipath scheme. So their anxiety and frustration I can understand,” he said.
Further, General Malik reiterated the Centre’s clarification that the fear of joblessness after four years is unnecessary as the government has assured lateral entry into the police and paramilitary. “A larger number will get inducted into police force and the private sector, even though a guarantee of that cannot be given now,” he said.
When asked about the concerns about a large number of young people trained to handle hi-tech systems will be out in four years, General Malik said, “The emphasis now is to recruit those who are better educated and are tech-savvy and therefore there is also an effort to employ people from IT institutions. They are given bonus points. That is the kind of people we want in the Armed Forces. During the Kargil War, there were many who came from different regimental forces and joined the infantry battalions (a military specialization which engages in ground combat on foot) and they fought war,” he said.
Naming India’s Kargil martyrs Captain Haneef Uddin and Vijayant Thapar, General Malik said that they gave up their regiments and fought in the battle losing their lives. “So, I don’t agree that four years are not enough. Yes, for the technical people, they could be given an extension. But again, I want to emphasise that let the scheme get into motion. Once we know where are the drawbacks, then corrections can take place,” he added.
The Agnipath recruitment scheme was cleared by the Cabinet Committee on Security on Tuesday. Under the scheme, around 46,000 youths, aged between 17 and a half and 21, will be recruited into the three services in a contract for four years.
However, after two days, defence service aspirants disrupted rail and road traffic in several parts of Bihar in protest against the recruitment scheme for its limited term of employment followed by compulsory retirement for most without gratuity and pension benefits
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