Three Service Chiefs Brief PM Modi: On June 21, 2022 the three service chiefs separately met Prime Minister Narendra Modi and briefed him about their plan to implement the Agnipath scheme. The scheme announced on June 14 seeks to recruit youngsters in the age bracket of 17-and-a-half to 21 years for a four-year period, with a provision to retain 25 per cent of them for 15 more years. In view of the fact that the recruitment could not take place during the last two years, a one-time waiver has been granted for the recruitment cycle for 2022. Accordingly, the upper age limit for the recruitment process for Agnipath scheme for 2022 is increased to 23 years.
Joint Press Briefing: In a joint briefing, top officials of the three services announced a detailed schedule of the recruitment process, asserting that there will be no compromise on the quality of the training to be imparted to the “Agniveers”, though the duration of their training period would be compressed.
Notification For Recruitment Under Agnipath Scheme: The three services have issued the first notification for the recruitment of Agniveers under the Agnipath scheme with the registration process set to begin in June/July this year.
Govt Stands Firm on Roll Out Agnipath Scheme: With the government standing its ground on the ‘Agnipath’ scheme, the three services have warned those who indulged in violence and arson will not be inducted. In a stern warning to those indulging in destructive protests over the scheme, they said that youths who were involved in arson and violence will not be able to join the three services as a police verification process will be carried out before enrolling anyone.
Incentives For Agnipath Retirees: The Centre has announced several incentives for the for Agnipath retirees. Some of these are:
- 10 per cent reservation in vacancies in the defence ministry and paramilitary forces including in the Indian Coast Guard, defence civilian posts and all the 16 Defence Public Sector. This reservation would be in addition to existing reservations for ex-servicemen.
- Three years age relaxation beyond the prescribed upper age limit for recruitment in CAPFs and Assam Rifles.
- A large number of ministries and the corporate sector have announced similar incentives for the
Agnipath retirees.
KEEL LAYING CEREMONY OF FOURTH SHIP OF SVL AND SECOND AND THIRD SHIPS OF ASW SWC
Keel for the fourth ship of Survey Vessel (Large) and second & third ships of ASW SWC for the Indian Navy was ceremoniously laid on June 17, 2022 by VAdm SN Ghormade, Vice Chief of Naval Staff at M/s L&T, Kattupalli. The Contract for construction of four SVL and eight ASW SWC for the Indian Navy was awarded to M/s GRSE as part of indigenous shipbuilding programme in October 2018 and April 2022 respectively.
INDIAN 5G TEST BED TO BE ESTABLISHED AT MILITARY COLLEGE OF TELECOMMUNICATION ENGINEERING
An Indian 5G test bed is to be established at the Military College of Telecommunication Engineering (MCTE), Mhow in collaboration with Indian Institute of Technology, Madras (IIT-M). An MoU to facilitate the same was signed between MCTE & IIT-M. The test bed will facilitate Indian Army to utilise the 5G technology for its operational use, especially along its borders.
