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With an aim to spread clarity about the Agnipath scheme, the Defence Minister will chair a consultative committee meeting which will include the presence of Minister of State Ajay Bhatt, the three service chiefs and the Defence Secretary.
Sources aware of the development say that it was a personal initiative taken by the defence ministry to allay the fears of the opposition on Agnipath so that it could lead to a clear political solution. The meeting holds importance in terms of laying out facts before various members of Parliament just before the upcoming Monsoon Session. "We have the Parliament session coming up and opposition parties are going to raise this particular issue and try and create a ruckus so in order to iron out whatever their issues or regarding the scheme and clarity can be provided this initiative has been taken by the Raksha Mantri," sources told ANI. Notably, Rajnath Singh also took on personal initiatives to brief senior opposition leaders on issues like India's relationship with China and the LAC issue. Even then Singh had made personal calls and clarified the issues with former defence Minister Sharad Pawar and AK Antony amongst the others. Indian Army and Navy have begun accepting registrations for the Agniveers programme, according to a July 2 Defense Ministry announcement. Agniveers will be enlisted for four years in the Army, Navy, and Air Force under the plan. Based on merit, willingness, and medical fitness, up to 25 per cent of them could be retained or re-enlisted in the regular cadre after four years. 75% of the population will be qualified for "Seva Nidhi" packages of 11-12 lakh rupees. Additionally, they will be given bank loans and skill certificates for their second career. The Air Force has received 7,49,899 applications for recruitment Several senior members of Parliament including Mallikarjun Kharge, Manish Tiwari, Supriya Sule, P Wilson amongst those who are part of this committee that will hold the meeting tomorrow. (ANI)
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