Oppn playing politics over Agnipath scheme, says PM Narendra Modi

Modi accuses Pak of waging proxy war in the garb of terrorism to stay relevant

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday rejected claims that the Agnipath scheme was launched to save on the pension bill, stating that it was implemented in consultation with the Army to keep the armed forces young and battle-ready.

The PM made the remarks in his address on the 25th anniversary of the victory in the Kargil War of 1999, which is marked as Kargil Vijay Diwas. Modi’s statement triggered a war of words between the ruling National Democratic Alliance and the opposition INDIA bloc over the contentious Agnipath scheme.

The PM accused the Opposition of playing politics over the recruitment process. Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge said it was “unfortunate and deplorable” that the PM indulged in “petty politics" even on occasions like paying tribute to martyrs on Kargil Vijay Diwas. No PM has ever done this before," Kharge said.

In a video message posted on the Ministry of Home Affairs’ X handle, Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) Director General Rahul Rasgotra said “well-trained and disciplined” Agniveers will prove to be “very useful” for the ITBP, which guards the Line of Actual Control between India and China.

In his speech in Drass, the PM said, “Some people are also spreading the misconception that the government has come up with this scheme to save pension money. I want to ask such people the question that the pension for today's recruits will arise after 30 years. Why would the government take a decision today?” "The aim of Agnipath is to make the forces young...The aim of Agnipath is to keep the armies continuously fit for war," he said.

The PM said Parliament and various committees have discussed for decades the need to make our armed forces younger, and only his government resolved this national security challenge. “The average age of Indian soldiers being higher than the global average has been a matter of concern,” he said.

On the Kargil conflict, the PM said Pakistan had not learnt any lessons from history and continues to wage a proxy war in the garb of terrorism to stay relevant. There has been an increase in terror incidents in the Jammu region in recent weeks. He also paid homage to the martyrs of the Kargil War.

The PM witnessed the first blast of the Shinkun La Tunnel Project in Ladakh virtually at the event. The project consists of a 4.1-km-long twin-tube tunnel to be constructed at around 15,800 feet on the Nimu-Padum-Darcha Road to provide all-weather connectivity to Leh.

Opposition leaders disputed the PM’s claims that the Agnipath scheme was introduced at the behest of the Army. Congress’ Jairam Ramesh said that General M M Naravane, who was Army chief at that time, had written that the scheme came as a complete surprise to the Army and as a ‘bolt from the blue’ to the Navy and Air Force. “Modi is now trying to evade responsibility for this disastrous scheme," he said in a post on X.