Maha: Cong, NCP demand rollback of Agnipath

Maha: Cong, NCP demand rollback of Agnipath
Image source: Google

Mumbai: Calling the Agnipath scheme for recruitment in the armed forces a "cruel joke" on the jobless youth in the country, the Congress and NCP in Maharashtra on Friday demanded its rollback.

The two parties are constituents of the Maha Vikas Aghadi government in the state along with Shiv Sena.

Maharashtra Congress chief Nana Patole said the Union government was "pushing the youth into the darkness of unemployment" after they complete four years of service in the defence forces, as the scheme contemplates.

The scheme is a "cruel joke on the youth" as it does not offer any security after four years of service, he said, adding that it should be withdrawn. "There should be no compromise on national security and sovereignty. Our soldiers are more important than a political party," Patole added.

The Nationalist Congress Party alleged that the scheme was only meant to "tease" the unemployed youth, and the BJP was not serious about finding a long-term solution to the issue of unemployment.

"Under the BJP rule, the country is witnessing the highest unemployment ratio. Prime Minister Narendra Modi had promised two crore jobs during the 2014 elections. His government unfortunately made no concrete efforts in the past eight years to generate sizeable employment," said NCP chief spokesperson Mahesh Tapase in a statement.

The Aagnipath scheme lacks direction and fails to safeguard long-term service prospects of the youth, he said.

Modi had promised 'One Rank-One Pension' to defence personnel, but the new scheme has "no rank and no pension" and does not even offer gratuity or provident fund, Tapase noted.

There is no roadmap for the future of those who would leave the armed forces after four years, he added.

"How and where will the youth learn new skills post retirement," the NCP leader asked.

The prime minister should bring out a revised scheme which will give long-term, stable and permanent jobs to the unemployed youth, Tapase said.