'Agniveers' to get preference in CAPF recruitment, experts sceptical of move

“The Agnipath scheme is a visionary step by @narendramodi for the bright future of the youth of the country. In this context, the home ministry has decided that such Agniveers who have completed four years of service under the scheme, will get preference in recruitment in the CAPFs and the Assam Rifles,” Shah tweeted on Wednesday.

New Delhi: With questions being raised on the future of Agnipath recruits after their four-year service in the armed forces, Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Wednesday announced that they would get preference for appointment in Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF) and Assam Rifles. “The Agnipath scheme is a visionary step by @narendramodi for the bright future of the youth of the country. In this context, the home ministry has decided that such Agniveers who have completed four years of service under the scheme, will get preference in recruitment in the CAPFs and the Assam Rifles,” Shah tweeted on Wednesday.

Concurring the view, a Home Ministry official said that the youth trained through the scheme will be able to contribute to the service and security of the nation in the future. He said his ministry has begun formulating a policy to implement the announcement. "Recruitment of the youths from Agnipeeth to CAPF and AR will be very much beneficial as the youths will already be trained and gained expertise in combat operations," he added.

However, experts in India's security and defense establishment were, skeptical of such a move. "There is already a huge manpower shortage in the central armed police forces. And the manpower crisis is increasing every year as thousands of security personnel either retired or take voluntary retirement. Instead of filing the vacant posts, the government is making new announcements. What is the use of making such announcements," said Ranbir Singh, general secretary of Confederation of Ex-Paramilitary Forces Martyrs Welfare Association to ETV Bharat.

Senior IPS officer and former commissioner of Delhi police Maxwell Pareira also echoed the same and said that this announcement will hardly make any change in the present system of the security establishment. Government statistics have revealed that there is a vacancy of 127049 posts in all the central armed police forces against its sanctioned strength of 1098933.

Statistics available with ETV Bharat said that the total strength of AR at present is 57108 against its sanctioned strength of 65143 keeping a vacancy of 8035. Similarly, in all other CAPFs, there is a shortage of human resources. The statistics further said that against the total sanctioned strength of 265173 personnel in BSF, the present strength is 236268 and there is a shortage of 28905 personnel.

The present strength of CISF is 139152 against the sanctioned strength of 163313. The present vacancy is 24161. The present strength of CRPF is 296898 against its sanctioned strength of 324723 and having 27825 posts vacant. There is a vacancy of 18633 personnel in SSB, 5169 personnel in ITBP, and 14321 personnel in Delhi police.

Ironically, on many occasions during the process of recruitment, many youths miss the chance to get enrolled in the armed forces due to medical grounds. In the recruitment of border guarding forces, the Home Ministry has already sanctioned 20 percent to the population in border districts that fall within the area of responsibility of the force, and 20 percent of vacancies are allotted to the population residing in areas affected by militancy in J&K, Northeast and Naxal affected areas.

The recruitment in the CAPF is made through the regular recruitment process conducted through the staff selection commission. The CAPF has been assigned the responsibility of securing India's international border as well as ensuring India's internal security.