Dehradun:

Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami on Sunday said that the state government will bring a proposal for the reservation of Agniveers.

“Agniveeers from the state would be given jobs in the government departments and the Police Department after they serve the nation. The state government will also bring a proposal to the Cabinet for the reservation for Agniveers,” the Chief Minister said while addressing a press conference.

He said that the government had already decided to give the government jobs to Agniveers in the state. “When the Agniveer scheme was introduced, I met with various military officers and veterans for a discussion. We had decided back then that we would give jobs to the Agniveers,” the Chief Minister said.

Meanwhile, on the occasion of Guru Purnima, the Chief Minister along with his mother planted a tree under the campaign ‘Ek Ped Maa Ke Naam’.

“To make nature greener, plant a tree in the name of your mother,” the Chief Minister wrote on X while joining the ‘Ek Ped Maa Ke Naam’ campaign organised by MDDA in Dehradun.

He added that under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, millions of trees have been planted across the country as a part of this campaign.

“This campaign symbolises respect for nature as well as for mothers. Let us all fulfil our responsibilities towards nature by planting trees and take a pledge to protect nature,” the Chief Minister added.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Shimla:

Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Saturday alleged that Congress leader Rahul Gandhi is spreading false propaganda on the Agniveer military recruitment scheme.

Mr Gandhi, in his first election meeting in Haryana for the Lok Sabha polls on Wednesday, had said that the Agniveer scheme would be scrapped and thrown in the dustbin if the INDIA bloc came to power. 

Mr Shah said that 25 per cent of the Agniveers would get permanent postings in the Army, while reservations in state government and paramilitary forces would be given to the remaining 75 per cent. Therefore, there would be a rare Agniveer who would not be employed, the home minister said.

Talking to reporters in Dharamshala, Mr Shah said that Mr Gandhi was spreading false propaganda on Agniveer and making an issue by telling lies. “Rahul has started a tradition of making lies a poll issue and Agniveer is the biggest example,” the BJP leader said.

“25 per cent of the Agniveers would get permanent posting in the Army. The BJP-ruled state governments have made 10-20 per cent reservation in the police for Agniveer besides 10 per cent reservation has also been made in the central paramilitary forces,” Mr Shah said.

The Agniveers have been given several relaxations like in age, examination and would also not appear in the physical test, he said, adding that there would be a rare Agniveer who would not be recruited in the state police or central paramilitary forces.

Moreover, private security agencies and companies would also give priority to Agniveers, who would be trained on government expenses, would get a good salary, gratuity and other benefits and also a job, Mr Shah said.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

New Delhi:

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal today unveiled AAP’s ’10 guarantees’ if his party wins the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. Mr Kejriwal’s assurances encompass a broad spectrum of public welfare initiatives, including pledges for free electricity and improved healthcare.

“BJP has always failed on its promises; my guarantees have proven track record,” Mr Kejriwal said. “People have to take a call whether to go for ‘Kejriwal ki Guarantee’ or ‘Modi Guarantee.”

At the forefront of Mr Kejriwal’s electoral promises is the assurance of free electricity for all, particularly targeting the economically backward sections of society. The AAP chief advocated for replicating Delhi’s model of uninterrupted power supply nationwide. 

“Out of the 10 guarantees, the first guarantee is that we will provide 24-hour electricity in the country. The country has the capacity to generate 3 lakh MW of electricity but the usage is only 2 lakh MW. Our country can produce more electricity than the demand. We have done it in Delhi and Punjab, we will do it in the country also. We will provide up to 200 units of free electricity to all the poor. It will cost Rs 1.25 lakh crore, we can arrange it,” Mr Kejriwal said. 

Second on Mr Kejriwal’s poll guarantees list is revamping education in government schools. The Delhi Chief Minister claimed that Rs 5 lakh crore will be required to remedy that and that state governments and the Centre should pay Rs 2.5 lakh crore each to make up for the total cost. 

“Today, the condition of our government schools is not good. Our second guarantee is that we will arrange good and excellent free education for everyone. Government schools will provide a better education than private schools. We have done it in Delhi and Punjab. Rs 5 lakh crore will be required for this. State governments will give Rs 2.5 lakh crore and central government will give Rs 2.5 crore for this,” he said. 

The AAP national convener also put a Rs 5 lakh crore price tag to overhaul government hospitals and improve India’s healthcare infrastructure. 

“The condition of our government hospital is not good in our country. Our third guarantee is better healthcare. We will arrange good treatment for everyone. Mohalla clinics will be opened in every village, every locality. District hospital will be converted into a Multispeciality Hospital. Every person born in this country will get free treatment. Treatment will not be done on the basis of insurance as this is a big scam. We will create infrastructure. Rs 5 lakh crore rupees will be spent on healthcare,” Mr Kejriwal said. 

Other guarantees on the list, according to Mr Kejriwal, are “freeing” Indian land from Chinese control, shutting down the Agniveer scheme, providing farmers MSP as per the Swaminathan Commission report and a full statehood to Delhi. 

“Our fourth guarantee is ‘Nation first’. China has occupied our land but our central govt is denying it…There is a lot of strength in our army. All the land of the country which has been occupied by China will be freed. For this, efforts will be made at the diplomatic level on one side and the Army will be given complete freedom to take whatever steps it wants to take regarding this. A scheme like Agniveer is harmful for the army and the youth are also troubled by it. The Agniveer scheme will be withdrawn,” Mr Kejriwal said. 

Mr Kejriwal, who was arrested by the probe agency Enforcement Directorate (ED) in connection with the Delhi excise policy scam case, was granted interim bail by the Supreme Court on Friday.