Armed forces need a balance of youth, experience: Chief of Defence Staff

A younger military was the centrepiece of the government’s Agnipath pitch when it launched the scheme four years ago. The Government of India extended the service tenure of Agniveers from 4 to 6 years. (PTI)“It will enhance the youthful profile of the armed forces and provide them a fresh lease of ‘josh’ (enthusiasm) and ‘jazba’ (passion).

It is envisaged that average age profile of Indian armed forces would come down by 4-5 years by implementation of this scheme,” the defence ministry said at the time. The shift from releasing 75% of Agniveers after four years to retaining all of them for full-term service marks a sharp departure from the original plan.

The government has effectively reversed the Agnipath scheme’s most defining feature: short-term service intended to maintain a youthful military profile. Chief of Defence Staff General NS Raja Subramani on Wednesday said that one of the principal reasons for the rethink was that the character of warfare has changed in the last few years.

All defence forces continuously review what is happening in the world, the CDS added. “Based on what conflicts are happening, and what kind of quality manpower we need, this decision has been taken.” The move to retain all Agniveers addresses concerns within the armed forces over losing personnel trained for specialised roles, military affairs expert Lieutenant General DS Hooda (retd) said.

“It makes little sense to let trained personnel go and then invest in training a fresh batch.” The Agnipath reset comes weeks before the three services were set to release 75% of Agniveers from their first batch, retaining only the 25% selected on merit for another 15 years under the scheme’s provisions.

Some experts, however, pointed to the creation of three classes of soldiers. The armed forces will now comprise soldiers who become permanent after four years, another batch after six, and senior personnel recruited under the old system, they added.

Also Read I Cabinet gives Agniveers two-year service extension, announces CDS The CDS expressed confidence that maximum amount of Agniveers will opt for full-term service. “They are motivated people, and when these 75% complete their two years, their seniority will be behind the 25%.

This is right, meritocracy is there. It’s not that you measure everyone with the same yardstick. This was done after proper thought and understanding.” “That’s okay, they have a dignified exit plan with an attractive financial package.

The armed forces will be happy to enrol all willing Agniveers for the second engagement period of two years followed by absorption into the regular cadre,” Subramani said. The evaluation of Agnipath was part of the scheme, Vaishnaw said.

“Both the government and armed forces have a unanimous view that the scheme has been extremely successful. Whatever benefits we were expecting, we got all those benefits. If we are to achieve Viksit Bharat, we must move with flexibility, adapting to society’s needs and incorporating changes happening in the world’s systems and environment — including changes in warfare methods,” the minister added.

Also Read I Agniveer Retirement 2026: First batch of 18k+ set to exit service by December 31, what are their next options? If the scheme stayed as it was, around 18,300 Agniveers would have been discharged from the three services by the year-end.

The first batch comprised around 19,000 Agniveers in the army, 2,850 in the IAF and 2,550 in the navy, according to official data.