The navy opened registrations under the new recruitment model for candidates who have passed class XII (senior secondary recruits) on July 1 and the process is on till July 24. The navy is also recruiting 200 candidates who have passed class 10 (matriculation recruits) and the registration for this entry is open till July 30

India had on June 14 announced the new scheme replacing the legacy system of recruitment to lower the age profile of the armed forces, ensure a fitter military and create a technically skilled war fighting force capable of meeting future challenges.

More than 300,000 applicants, including 20,499 women applicants have so far registered for recruitment into the Indian Navy under the Agnipath model for short-term induction into the three services after registrations began on July 1, officials familiar with the matter said on Saturday.

A total of 3,03,328 applications were received as of Friday for the 2,800 jobs that the navy is offering in the first phase of recruitment this year, the officials said. Those recruited under the new model will be called Agniveers.

The navy opened registrations under the new recruitment model for candidates who have passed class XII (senior secondary recruits) on July 1 and the process is on till July 24. The navy is also recruiting 200 candidates who have passed class 10 (matriculation recruits) and the registration for this entry is open till July 30.

“The scheme has got good response in line with what the Indian Air Force got. Youth are excited about serving the armed forces as Agniveers,” said one of the officials cited above.

Almost 7,50,000 lakh candidates registered themselves for recruitment into IAF under the Agnipath scheme. The candidates who have registered are competing for 3,000 jobs in the air force. In all, the air force received 7,49,899 applications from defence aspirants, compared to 6,31,528 applications last year, which was the highest in any recruitment cycle, according to IAF data. The army’s registration process is still on.

The armed forces will recruit 46,000 Agniveers this year – army (40,000), and IAF and navy (3,000 each).

India had on June 14 announced the new scheme replacing the legacy system of recruitment to lower the age profile of the armed forces, ensure a fitter military and create a technically skilled war fighting force capable of meeting future challenges. It sparked widespread protests and forced a concerted outreach by the government to scotch apprehensions about the scheme.

On Friday, three Opposition MPs walked out of a meeting of the defence standing committee meeting after their demand to discuss the Agnipath recruitment model was rejected, as reported by HT.

Congress leaders KC Venugopal and Uttam Reddy and the Bahujan Samaj Party’s Danish Ali wanted the Agnipath scheme to be discussed on the grounds that it was the most important issue before the defence sector, but panel chairman Jual Oram stressed that Agnipath was not a subject on the annual agenda of the panel, and asked the Opposition lawmakers to raise it in the House.