Govt likely to announce ambitious ‘Tour of Duty’ scheme for soldiers tomorrow

New Delhi: The Government is likely to be announced tomorrow the ambitious 'Tour of Duty for Soldiers' recruitment scheme. It is expected that Prime Minister Narendra Modi will himself take the lead and will unveil it. The Tour of Duty Scheme will pave way for the induction of troops in the forces for short-term tenures.

Highly placed sources told Defence Watch that after the announcement by the Prime Minister, the Chiefs of the Armed Forces will organize a press conference in New Delhi. Lt Gen Anil Puri from the Department of Military Affairs will make the introductory remarks about the proposed scheme.  It will be followed by the views of the Head of Services.

They said, "Under the new scheme, youngsters will join forces for a period of four years and serve the country. The scheme is a part of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's major reform towards reducing expenditure and age profile of the defence forces."

Under the new concept of recruitment for the armed forces, the youth who come forward will be called Agniveers to serve the motherland by treading the path of Agnipath.

It is expected that the new model of recruitment will bring down the average age profile of the units from the present 35-36 years to 25-26 years.

At the end of four years, most of the soldiers will be relieved from duty and will get assistance from the armed forces for further employment avenues. The trained youth will be also sought after by private firms and corporations.

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