STATE TIMES NEWS
JAMMU: Seeking immediate rollback of the ill-conceived Agnipath Scheme, former Minister and Senior National Conference leader Ajay Kumar Sadhotra on Friday called for resumption of recruitment rallies in the Country as per time tested practice of over seven decades.
“The roll out of Agnipath Scheme is a cruel joke with youth of the nation who have been craving for joining the army and particularly those having undergone written and physical tests prior to the harsh ‘no recruitment’ move unleashed two years ago”, Sadhotra said while interacting with the prominent inhabitants of Nand Baba Colony, Lale da Bagh, Lower Muthi.
Sadhotra referred to the widespread protests held in Jammu, as elsewhere across the country, over this anti-youth measure by the insensitive government, saying this speaks the BJP has not learnt the lessons of pushing the nation to unrest, be it farmers’ agitation last year and the army recruitment aspirants now.
The BJP has lost the sense of proportion, especially at a time when the country is passing through difficult times, he added.
The former Minister questioned the rationale behind the scheme, envisaging recruitment for four years on contractual basis with compulsory retirement for three fourths of the recruits without gratuity or pension benefits. He said the youth have genuine apprehensions about their careers being jeopardized by such measures which raise questions and doubts in their minds.
“Instead of having devised ways and means in granting age relaxation for such of the youth who have become over aged due to restrictions on the recruitment for two year, the government has come up with the illogical contractual placements for four years”, Sadhotra said, asking that where shall the dislodged contractual personnel go at their prime age in mid twenties.
This is like playing with their careers and rendering them parasites at a very young age, he said and added that such steps don’t serve the interests of the aspirants nor the country.
Sadhotra wished good sense prevailing upon the government and the vicious circle of pushing the country, particularly the youth, to crisis like situation, coming to an end, sooner the better. The aspirations and urges of the young population stands already trampled and as if it was not enough the BJP government has waded into a very sensitive arena, which relates to the country’s armed forces, their morale and the regimental hierarchies. He questioned the logic behind tailoring a scheme, which fails in taking care about the future of youth joining the contractual four year recruitment in the armed forces.
He cautioned the BJP against testing the patience of youth, who are already grappling with the burgeoning unemployed that has further aggravated due to pandemic situations in the recent past. He described such moves as desperate acts of diverting attention as the BJP government has failed in generating employment and providing ‘two crores’ of jobs every year promised in successive elections since 2014. Sadhotra said that the best recourse available to the government is to rollback the Agnipath Scheme in the larger interest of the nation and the youth.
Others who spoke on the occasion are Ghar Singh, Corporator, Capt Madan Lal, Capt Angrez Singh, President of the Colony, Neeraj Koul, Secretary of the Colony, Raghbir Singh Manhas, District President, Randhir Singh Jamwal, District Secretary, Rakesh Sharma, Ghar Singh Manhas, Retd. Asstt. Director, Sewa Ram, Gurnam Singh and Lal Chand Bhagat.
