MHA Agniveers

Guwahati, June 18: The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) on Saturday announced that it has decided to reserve 10% vacancies for recruitment in CAPFs and Assam Rifles, for Agniveers. The development comes amid protests against the Agnipath scheme, done by Defense aspirants across parts of India.

Apart from the 10% reservation, there will also be an age relaxation of 3 years beyond the upper age limit, for Agniveers in the two forces. For the first batch of Agniveers, the age relaxation will be for 5 years beyond the prescribed upper age limit.

Protests break out in parts of the country

Several states of India including UP, Odisha, Telangana, Rajasthan, Bihar and Madhya Pradesh saw protests against the Agnipath scheme introduced by the Centre recently.

A total of 260 people were arrested and six FIRs lodged until Friday in Uttar Pradesh in connection with violent protests. Protests also continued across Rajasthan on Friday with protesters holding demonstrations, taking out rallies, blocking railway tracks, and damaging public property.
Also Read: Explainer on Agnipath: Here are the Facts and Myths about Govt’s newly launch Scheme

A 24-year-old man died and several were injured after security personnel opened fire on hundreds of agitators at the Secunderabad railway station on Friday as the protests escalated into large-scale violence and arson. Youths pelted vehicles with stones in Ballabhgarh, squatted on railway tracks in Jind, and burnt tires in Rohtak as protests continued in Haryana for the second day on Friday.

Agnipath scheme

The Centre on Tuesday unveiled the ambitious Agnipath scheme for the recruitment of youths aged between 17 and a half and 21 in the Army, Navy, and Air Force, largely on a four-year short-term contractual basis. On Thursday night, it raised the upper age limit for recruitment under the ‘Agnipath‘ scheme to 23 years for 2022 as the protests against the new model for enrolment of soldiers into the three services spread.