Agnipath vs Short Service Commission vs Permanent Commission in Indian armed forces: comparison

Agnipath Scheme: With the Indian military introducing its new recruitment programme named 'Agnipath' or path of fire, here's a comparison between the three types of recruitment systems in the Indian armed forces including permanent commission, and short service commission.

Permanent commission means a career in the armed forces till retirement. Under short service commission, the Army allows 10-year service with an option of a 4-year extension. Under the Agnipath scheme, Agniveer recruits will serve for 4 years.

For permanent commission in the Army, recruits join the National Defence Academy or the Indian Military Academy. Under short service commission, soldiers can apply for permanent commission when their tenure ends. Meanwhile, Agniveer soldiers can apply to join regular cadre after 4 years.

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For permanent commission in Army, applicants can sit for the NDA exam after class 11, while the IMA has 4 entry categories. For short service commission, training takes place at the Officers' Training Academy in Chennai. For Agnipath, candidates can apply after completing Class 10 or 12.

For permanent commission in the Indian Air Force, applications are allowed after Class 12 or graduation. In the air force's short service commission as part of the flying branch, 14 years of service without extension are required. For Agnipath, those aged 17 and a half to 21 years can apply.

To join the air force's permanent commission, candidates have various options like the NDA, AFCAT, CDSE, NCC special entry, or Met entry. For air force's short service commission in ground duty, 10 years with an option of 4-year extension are available. Meanwhile, for induction under Agnipath, the medical and fitness norms are as per existing rules.

For permanent commission, the Indian Navy can be joined as either an officer, or a sailor. For the navy's short service commission, a 10-year tenure is available. Meanwhile, Agnipath offers a severance package and non-contributory insurance.

For Navy's permanent commission, entrance is through NDA, CDS, UES, or BTech options. Short service commission in the Navy can be extended by 4 years. The Agnipath scheme also offers death and disability allowance.

The Agnipath scheme offers multiple advantages to the forces and the government. The scheme has been announced at a time when the military has gone two years without recruitment due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

The Agnipath scheme will reduce the average age in the forces from 32 to 26 years. Agnipath will also provide a larger applicant pool when the Army has 1 lakh vacancies. It is also expected to reduce the government's pension bill for armed forces. Additionally, the government is likely to save around ₹11 crore on cost spent on a single soldier, as per the original proposal.