The CDS announced a two-year service extension for Agniveer posts today. The Cabinet approved this move for 75% of soldiers who finish their initial four-year term. The CDS said, “After completing this two-year engagement period, all willing Agniveers will be enrolled in the Armed Forces, subject to objective selection criteria.”
“... 25% of those [Agniveers] who complete their initial four-year engagement period will be enrolled as regular soldiers. Regarding the remaining 75%, the Indian Defence Forces have recommended—and the Cabinet has approved today—that they be granted a second engagement period of two years,” the CDS said.
He added: “After completing this two-year engagement period, all willing Agniveers will be enrolled in the Armed Forces, subject to objective selection criteria.”
The move comes weeks before the three services were to start releasing 75% of Agniveers from their first batch in phases starting mid-November.
Over 18,300 Agniveers were to exit the armed forces by December 31 after completing their four-year term.
The Agnipath recruitment model—long a political flashpoint because it cuts the tenure of personnel below officer rank and offers them fewer service benefits—was introduced in 2022 to keep the armed forces young and combat-ready.
Under Agnipath, soldiers are recruited for a four-year term, with a provision to retain only 25% of them in regular service for another 15 years.
The 18,300 soldiers, who were to be released this year, account for three-fourths of the 24,400 recruits inducted into the army, air force and navy in the first round of recruitment. The first batch comprised around 19,000 Agniveers in the army, 2,850 in the IAF and 2,550 in the navy, according to official data.