Arab Press

بالشعب و للشعب
Saturday, Aug 30, 2025

Indian military’s ‘path of fire’ recruitment plan sparks mass unrest

India unveiled a plan this week aimed at modernizing its fighting forces to defend against external threats. Instead, it triggered a wave of massive violence at home.
Protesters across the country on Friday set trains ablaze, pelted officials with rocks and attacked the homes of government leaders after the Indian military announced a new recruitment policy to trim salary and pension costs.

Television footage showed crowds of protesters, who appear to be potential recruits, setting fire to train coaches and disrupting rail and road traffic.

At least one man was killed after police in Secunderabad, near Hyderabad in the south, opened fire on protesters. In several cities, protesters shut down highways and forced the cancellation of dozens of trains.

The protests come after the defense ministry unveiled a new policy that will see soldiers hired under a four-year contract and no pension entitlements.

The protesters reportedly coordinated through WhatsApp groups formed two days ago, following the announcement of the scheme by Union Defence Minister Rajnath Singh earlier this week.

One of the protesters said: “We began our protest in a peaceful manner at 8:30 am but the police action provoked us to react violently. Who gave them the orders to fire at us, do we look like some terrorists?”

To control the protesting mob, the police had to resort to firing. One person reportedly died in the firing.

The Agnipath recruitment scheme proposes to recruit youth in the 17.5 – 21 age group into the Army for four years. Following the large-scale protests, one-time relaxation of age was given in the 2022 recruitment cycle, increasing the upper age limit to 23.

The new defence recruitment scheme changes the duration of the job, as well as the pension benefits—as opposed to the earlier system of 15 years’ job guarantee and guaranteed pension afterwards, Agnipath proposes just a four-year contract with fewer severance benefits.

The aspirants are thus demanding that the Army should revert to the previous system.

Many of the youth said they were training for years to join the Army and “did not have any other job skills or options.”

“We came here to express our problems and seek justice (but things went out of control),” another youth said, adding that they had no connection with any political party. “We do not even understand politics.”
Newsletter

Related Articles

Arab Press
0:00
0:00
Close
After the Shock of Defeat, Iranians Yearn for Change
YouTube Altered Content by Artificial Intelligence – Without Permission
Iran Faces Escalating Water Crisis as Protests Spread
More Than Half a Million Evacuated as Typhoon Kajiki Heads for Vietnam
HSBC Switzerland Ends Relationships with Over 1,000 Clients from Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, Qatar, and Egypt
Sharia Law Made Legally Binding in Austria Despite Warnings Over 'Incompatible' Values
Dogfights in the Skies: Airbus on Track to Overtake Boeing and Claim Aviation Supremacy
Tim Cook Promises an AI Revolution at Apple: "One of the Most Significant Technologies of Our Generation"
Are AI Data Centres the Infrastructure of the Future or the Next Crisis?
Miles Worth Billions: How Airlines Generate Huge Profits
Zelenskyy Returns to White House Flanked by European Allies as Trump Pressures Land-Swap Deal with Putin
Beijing is moving into gold and other assets, diversifying away from the dollar
Trump Backs Putin’s Land-for-Peace Proposal Amid Kyiv’s Rejection
Zelenskyy to Visit Washington after Trump–Putin Summit Yields No Agreement
Iranian Protection Offers Chinese Vehicle Shipments a Cost Advantage over Japanese and Korean Makers
United States Sells Luxury Yacht Amadea, Valued at Approximately $325 Million, in First Sale of a Seized Russian Yacht Since the Invasion of Ukraine
Saudi Arabia accelerates renewables to curb domestic oil use
Cristiano Ronaldo and Georgina Rodríguez announce engagement
Asia-Pacific dominates world’s busiest flight routes, with South Korea’s Jeju–Seoul corridor leading global rankings
Private Welsh island with 19th-century fort listed for sale at over £3 million
Sam Altman challenges Elon Musk with plans for Neuralink rival
Australia to Recognize the State of Palestine at UN Assembly
The Collapse of the Programmer Dream: AI Experts Now the Real High-Earners
Armenia and Azerbaijan to Sign US-Brokered Framework Agreement for Nakhchivan Corridor
British Labour Government Utilizes Counter-Terrorism Tools for Social Media Monitoring Against Legitimate Critics
WhatsApp Deletes 6.8 Million Scam Accounts Amid Rising Global Fraud
Texas Residents Face Water Restrictions While AI Data Centers Consume Millions of Gallons
India Rejects U.S. Tariff Threat, Defends Russian Oil Purchases
United States Establishes Strategic Bitcoin Reserve and Digital Asset Stockpile
Thousands of Private ChatGPT Conversations Accidentally Indexed by Google
China Tightens Mineral Controls, Curtailing Critical Inputs for Western Defence Contractors
JPMorgan and Coinbase Unveil Partnership to Let Chase Cardholders Buy Crypto Directly
British Tourist Dies Following Hair Transplant in Turkey, Police Investigate
WhatsApp Users Targeted in New Scam Involving Account Takeovers
Trump Deploys Nuclear Submarines After Threats from Former Russian President Medvedev
Germany’s Economic Breakdown and the Return of Militarization: From Industrial Collapse to a New Offensive Strategy
Germany Enters Fiscal Crisis as Cabinet Approves €174 Billion in New Debt
IMF Upgrades Global Growth Forecast as Weaker Dollar Supports Outlook
Politics is a good business: Barack Obama’s Reported Net Worth Growth, 1990–2025
UN's Top Court Declares Environmental Protection a Legal Obligation Under International Law
"Crazy Thing": OpenAI's Sam Altman Warns Of AI Voice Fraud Crisis In Banking
Japanese Prime Minister Vows to Stay After Coalition Loses Upper House Majority
President Trump Diagnosed with Chronic Venous Insufficiency After Leg Swelling
Man Dies After Being Pulled Into MRI Machine Due to Metal Chain in New York Clinic
FIFA Pressured to Rethink World Cup Calendar Due to Climate Change
Iranian President Reportedly Injured During Israeli Strike on Secret Facility
Kurdistan Workers Party Takes Symbolic Step Towards Peace in Northern Iraq
BRICS Expands Membership with Indonesia and Ten New Partner Countries
Elon Musk Founds a Party Following a Poll on X: "You Wanted It – You Got It!"
AI Raises Alarms Over Long-Term Job Security
×