India moves to retain military recruits amid border risks and troop gaps

AI Summary

India will extend the service of more than 18,000 recruits from the first Agnipath intake by two years, revising a scheme under which most recruits leave after four years. The change is intended to address military manpower shortages and security concerns along the borders with China and Pakistan.

Thousands of Indian soldiers who would otherwise leave the military after four years will be kept on duty, in a major rethink of the country’s controversial recruitment model as New Delhi grapples with persistent manpower shortages and security concerns along its borders with China and Pakistan, analysts say. Under revisions approved by the federal cabinet last Tuesday, more than 18,000 recruits from the inaugural batch of the Agnipath (“Path of Fire”) scheme will be granted a two-year service...