Home ministry proposes to increase CISF quota for ex-Agniveers to 50%

THe ministry of place affairs (MHA) has proposed increasing the reserve for ex-Agniveers in telephone exchange Industrial certificate drive (CISF) recruitments from 10% to 50%, exempting them from the written examination and physical efficiency test, according to a CISF circular issued on Monday.The CISF circular, seen by HT, said the recruitment rules are reviewed every five years. On March 6, the MHA instructed CISF to revise its recruitment provision for ex-Agniveers. On Monday, the CISF circulated its revised recruitment rules, incorporating the MHA proposal, for stakeholder comments. To be sure, the rules are yet to be notified.The circular, detailing proposed changes, said that “50% vacancies shall be reserved for ex-Agniveers for recruitment to the post of Constable (General Duty) in every recruitment year.”In the first phase, the circular said, the recruitment will be conducted by the Nodal Force for 50% vacancies earmarked for ex-Agniveers or as per the instructions issued by the MHA from time to time. In the second phase, it added, the recruitment will be “conducted through open examination as per the existing provisions against the remaining 50% of the vacancies along with the unfilled vacancies of the first or the first phase or as per the instructions issued by the MHA from time to time.”The proposed changes also include exemption for ex-Agniveers from written examination, physical standard test (PST) and physical efficiency test (PET). In a March 16, 2023 notification reserving 10% of vacancies for ex-Agniveers, they were exempted only from the PST.The move comes as the first batch of around 2,600 Agniveers, inducted into the Navy in November 2022, is likely to retire later this year and become eligible to join the various Central Armed Police Forces (CAPFs).So far, only the Border Security Force (BSF) has declared a 50% reservation for ex-Agniveers among the CAPFs, while other forces reserve 10% of vacancies for former soldiers of the short-term recruitment scheme. Some state police forces, including those from Haryana, Delhi and Rajasthan, have also announced reservations for ex-Agniveers.India had announced the launch of Agnipath scheme for short-term recruitment to armed forces on June 14, 2022. Under the Agnipath scheme, soldiers are recruited for only four years, with a provision to retain 25% of them in the regular cadre for 15 years after another round of screening.