The Indian Navy has received 5.62 lakh applications under the Agnipath military recruitment scheme till Wednesday, the defence ministry said. The Indian Navy had on July 2 begun the recruitment process under the scheme.
"Registration Update: A total of 5,62,818 aspirants have registered...as of 9 AM on July 27," a Defence Ministry spokesperson tweeted while talking about the Navy's recruitment process.
Under the Agnipath scheme, youths between the ages of 17-and-a-half and 21 years would be inducted for a four-year tenure, while 25 per cent of them will be subsequently inducted for regular service.
The scheme was unveiled on June 14, following which there were violent protests against it in several states for nearly a week and several opposition parties demanded its rollback.
The government had on June 16 increased the upper age limit for recruitment under the scheme to 23 years from 21 for the year 2022, and subsequently announced a slew of placatory steps like a preference for Agniveers in central paramilitary forces and defence public sector undertakings upon their retirement.
