Amid violent protests in parts of the country over the Centre's Agnipath scheme, Union minister and former Army chief General V K Singh (retd) on Friday accused the opposition parties of creating a controversy over the recruitment plan by "provoking" people.
Since the Opposition has nothing else to do, it is stoking a controversy over the scheme even before its implementation has started, he alleged.
Speaking to reporters at the Nagpur airport over the violent protests and opposition to Agnipath, he said, "There is no controversy in the scheme, but a controversy is being created by the opposition, which has nothing else to do. They are being surrounded by the ED..."
"People are being told wrong things and being provoked. Where is the controversy when the scheme is yet to get started?" he added.
The minister said the defence forces were never known for providing jobs on a large scale.
"People get jobs in the Army and other forces after fulfilling certain conditions, wherein a lot of things have to be done. Only one candidate out of 40 to 45 gets selected," he said.
So, if they (Agniveers) perform well, then 25 per cent of them will be retained in the services. Besides, the remaining ones will get a good financial package, he said, adding that states like Haryana, Uttar Pradesh as well as the Home Ministry have assured to give priority to them in recruitment in other services.
"So, where is the controversy?" he asked.
When asked about the major advantage of the scheme, Singh said the induction of youths will keep the profile of the forces young.
"In the armed forces, things are thought in different ways and not just in one direction. It was thought that youths should be recruited on a large scale and once they are trained, they will do good for the society and be disciplined. But it appears that many youths are not disciplined," he said.
The government on Tuesday unveiled a "transformative" scheme--"Agnipath"- for the recruitment of soldiers in the Army, Navy and the Air Force largely on a four-year short-term contractual basis. Under the scheme, around 46,000 soldiers will be recruited this year between the ages of 17-and-a-half years and 23 years into the three services.
However, the government's plan has been met with protests. Violence has erupted in several states in the country, including Bihar, Haryana, Uttar Prades, Madhya Pradesh and Telangana, against the scheme. The Congress on Friday demanded its immediate rollback, saying it is neither in the interest of the country nor its security.
