26 April 2024 – The Indian Express

Defence Recruitment Process in India

• The so-called Agnipath initiative was unveiled on June 14, 2022, and it has since gone into effect with the first group of Agniveers—a term given to these young men and women—being enlisted in military units following the conclusion of their recruit training.
• The plan has come under fire for a number of reasons, particularly from the veteran community. The main reason why the veterans have expressed disagreement is because they still feel a feeling of loyalty to the organisation they served in.

The Agnipath Scheme: What is it?

• It enables young people who are driven and patriotic to enlist in the military for a four-year term. Agniveer is the name of the young person enlisting in the army.
• Between 45,000 and 50,000 soldiers will be recruited yearly under the new plan, the majority of them would leave the service after just four years.
• Only 25% of the batch, though, will be rehired into their respective services after four years, for a total of fifteen years.

Qualifications:

• It is exclusively available to employees who do not enter the military as commissioned officers and are below the officer rank.
• In the Indian armed services, commissioned officers are the only rank available. They are formally tasked with protecting the nation and frequently hold a commission under the president’s sovereign authority.
• Applicants may apply if they are between the ages of 17.5 and 23.

Goals:

• It is anticipated to result in a 4–5 year decrease in the average age profile of the Indian Armed Forces.
• According to the plan, the average age of the armed forces will drop from 32 to 26 years old in the next six to seven years.

What Kind of Concerns Are Being Voiced About the Agnipath Scheme?

• It is crucial that the commanders of the corresponding units are aware of the difficulties that lie ahead in order to successfully integrate the Agniveers into the military environment. The Agniveers can’t possibly meet these hurdles on their own, even though they will probably succeed in order to stay on board. The leaders should pay attention to these difficulties because they are more intangible in nature.

Unfavourable Impact on Professional Skills:

• The very high turnover rate of young troops, the expansion of infrastructure and training capabilities, and the improvement of the administrative structure to facilitate better soldier recruiting, release, and retention are the first steps in the process.

Operational Capability Degradation:

• A military bragging of a low teeth-to-tail ratio (T3R) is adding more tail to the animal. The airmen and sailors of the Indian Air Force and Indian Navy work in highly specialised positions that call for a high level of training, technical proficiency, and experience.
• Given that the Agniveer programme, which is based on the short-term contractual soldier model, will require some time to properly execute at an organisational level, there is a possibility that the system will exacerbate T3R.
• In military strategy and planning, the term “tooth-to-tail ratio” (T3R) refers to the proportion of fighting forces (the “tooth”) to support personnel (the “tail”).
• The “tail” consists of support components like logistics, administration, and medical units, while the “tooth” stands for the front-line fighting forces, such as infantry, combat pilots, and combat vehicles.
• A high T3R might be interpreted as a sign of a military operation that is sustained and well-supported because it denotes a higher percentage of support personnel than combat forces.
• All-India All-Class Recruitment Has Replaced Class-Based Recruitment:
• Such a significant change in pattern portends badly for the armed services since it will undermine the Indian Army’s operational philosophy, command structures, and organisational administration.
• Despite receiving professional training, Indian Army personnel are driven by their social identities, since they are all concerned with maintaining a positive reputation among their peers in their caste, village, or social milieu.

Creating a Deficit in Cooperation and Trust:

• Training, integrating, and deploying soldiers with varying degrees of experience and motivation will provide significant challenges. There may be unhealthy competition if the criterion for retaining soldiers is to identify the 25% of soldiers on short-term contracts.
• Particularly in their last year of contract, an organisation that relies on trust, camaraderie, and esprit de corps may find itself dealing with rivalries and jealousies between victors and losers.

Eliminating State-Wise Quotas:

• The Agnipath programme also eliminates the notion of a State-by-State Army recruiting quota, which was based on the State’s Recruitable Male Population and put into place in 1966.
• As was the case in Pakistan with its province of Punjab, this quota prevented an unbalanced force that was controlled by any one State, linguistic community, or ethnicity.
• According to scholarly research, a high degree of ethnic imbalance has been linked to serious democratic issues and a higher risk of civil war—a concerning development for modern-day India, where the ideology of the ruling party is seriously testing federalism.

Insufficient Motivational Factors:

• As a legacy of the British who looked for the living circumstances, amenities for the soldiers’ families, and post-retirement incentives and prizes, such as land grants, the Indian Army has up to now offered salary, uniform, and status in India.
• Without receiving a pension, a short-term contractual soldier will be perceived as working in occupations following their military duty that are not considered as having the same status and respect as the honourable profession. It will make people hired on temporary contracts less motivated.

Severe Inconsistency Between Requirement and Hiring:

• There is now a personnel shortage of about 1,55,000 throughout the three services, with the Army having the greatest number of openings at 1,36,000 positions. The Agnipath initiative intends to fill over 90% of these non-officer combat ranks. It would be wasteful to let go of 75% of the trained recruits after four years of service in such a scenario.

Worsening Situation in Geopolitics:

• Higher troop levels are now required by India to maintain control over China, Pakistan, and rebels in Kashmir due to the breakdown of “peace and tranquillity” at the borders with China.
• The fact that some of the Rashtriya Rifles (RR) troops, which were formerly engaged in counterinsurgency operations, have reoriented themselves towards the China front makes this mismatch clear.
• It also cannot ignore newly emergent security issues, like the current Manipur crisis, where the army is the primary force involved in handling the situation.
• Depending on their skill set and the training they get, the economy’s willingness to accept or absorb the former Agniveers will vary.
• especially when a rising proportion of graduates continue to lack meaningful work possibilities in considerable or enough numbers. However, Agnipath presents serious difficulties because it pertains to national security and defence.
• What Kinds of Reforms Are Needed in the Hiring Process?
• Increasing the Permanent Retention Quota and Age Limit:
• The government may assure the operational readiness of the armed services, attract skilled and dedicated individuals, and establish a balanced blend of youthful enthusiasm and experience by increasing the age limit and permanent retention quota to 50%.
• In order to guarantee that the armed forces can efficiently reduce and modernise over time without sacrificing their overall operational preparedness, the government’s changes will be a welcome course correction.

Psychological Integration into Military Unit Culture:

• When in war, a military unit is eventually required to perform. It is necessary to continuously prepare for the intended results in the face of an enemy rather than waiting for challenging combat scenarios.
• In a same vein, the commanders of the units must concentrate on the Agniveers’ psychological integration into the unit and make sure they are shaped into productive team members.
• Promoting unity within military units:
• The characteristic of a superior military unit is cohesiveness inside the unit, which is dependent on the human component of each soldier. From this, unit pride arises.
• Soldier discipline stems from their own conscience and character, which in turn informs their drive and team player psychology. A soldier’s ability to maintain harmony in relationships and foster a sense of unity inside the unit is what gives them power on the battlefield.

Identifying the Human Factor and Traditional Fighting Techniques:

• The current confrontation between Russia and Ukraine, or maybe the Israel Defence Forces’ (IDF) failures in the Israel-Hamas conflict, have supported the idea that traditional warfare techniques and the human factor will always prevail over contemporary technology, which can only serve to reinforce them.
• Despite the Agniveers’ superior technical threshold, the leaders shouldn’t become complacent. Without teaching these men and women to live a life of camaraderie, the aforementioned qualities will be useless.

Training and Nurturing Agniveers Based on Values:

• The unit leadership is responsible for organising and carrying out the value-based nurturing, which must start right away and is based on the unit ethos. Regardless of how far technology has come in the field of combat, a soldier’s ability to support his flanking partner will always be valued.
• Introducing Competitive Teamwork:
• When it came to competing for acceptance rather than rejection, the Agniveers would strive to surpass one another. However, the Agniveers’ propensity for one-upmanship would be in opposition to the objective of creating a cohesive army.
• A difficult task would be to prevent the emergence of any undesirable personality feature within the group, considering that 25% of the Agniveers will remain. If left untreated, this can worsen and eventually have an impact on the unit’s overall health.
• Including a Psychological Test:
• The government ought to think about incorporating a “psychology” exam into the hiring process, following the model employed in the military for officer selection.
• This will permit improved Agniveer grooming and assessment and assist the unit commander in managing the existing human resources.

Converging the Military and Civilian Gap:

• Because of its crucial role in maintaining national security, the military has continued to be an institution that is highly regarded. The commencement of Agniveer recruitment has a significant influence, primarily because it will drive the forces to gradually transform into a citizen’s army. Agnipath should reduce the gap between the military and the general population by promoting youth exposure to and comprehension of the military.

As Combat Ready Force of the Future:

• The necessity of having trained civilians in the defence system has been demonstrated by the conflict in Ukraine. Agnipath might provide India with a cutting-edge, combat-ready army that is ready for action in both peace and war, particularly in scenarios involving disaster relief and rescue.
• They might even serve as a force of resistance in the event of a terror assault. Therefore, it should be acknowledged that the released Agniveers can be included as possible reserve youth army members among civilians after completing their military training.
• With the implementation of the Agnipath initiative, India’s military policy underwent a substantial reform that changed the armed forces’ recruitment procedure. Although the plan has attracted attention and generated discussion, the Agniveers who were recruited meet the required physical criteria, intelligence, and motivation, as evidenced by the scheme’s initial implementation. In military operations, human factors continue to be more important than technological improvements. Therefore, in order to ensure that Agniveers adhere to the ethos of unit pride and togetherness, leaders must place a high priority on their character development and psychological well-being.