'Give same benefits to Agniveer martyrs'

Considering the plight of family members and Next of Kin (NoK) of Agniveers killed in the line of duty, their family members should receive the same benefits that are provided to the kinfolk of a regular soldier, the Parliamentary Standing Committee on defence recommenced.

This was conveyed in the report of the House panel headed by Bharatiya Janata Party MP Jual Oram titled “A review of functioning of zila sainik boards in the country” tabled in the Parliament on Thursday. The Committee also noted that there is no assured employment or skill development programme exclusively designed for Agniveer, except for some percentage of reservation of jobs in Central Armed Police Forces.

“The Committee are happy to note that in consonance of their considered views during the examination of the subject, the Ministry have started monitoring of the quota in filling government vacancies. The Committee also desire that rather than simply monitoring the vacancies, Agniveers, who are destined to go out of the service after a certain years of service, should be informed personally about the vacancies and ensure that they fill up the forms to appear for the required physical and written tests so that no vacancy remain unfilled,” the report stated.