NEW DELHI: The mother of Kirti Chakra-winning soldier Captain Anshuman Singh urged the government to halt the Agniveer scheme, which involves temporary recruitments to the Indian Army.
“With folded hands, I request the government to stop the Agniveer scheme. Four years is not enough. Soldiers deserve pensions, canteen access, and all other facilities,” said Manju Singh after meeting Rahul Gandhi, the local MP and leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, in Rae Bareli.
On July 5, President Draupadi Murmu awarded the Kirti Chakra posthumously to Captain Anshuman Singh of the Army Medical Corps, 26th Battalion, the Punjab Regiment. Captain Singh died from burn injuries he sustained while trying to retrieve medicines from a medical facility near an ammunition dump that caught fire due to a short circuit at Siachen on the night of July 18-19.
Before turning his attention to the medical facility, Captain Anshuman Singh had also rescued several people trapped inside a fiberglass hut near the ammunition dump.
Following the defense investiture ceremony, the Ministry of Defence released a video of Anshuman’s widow, Smriti Singh. She and Anshuman had maintained a long-distance relationship for eight years before getting married in February last year.
The night of the fire was the last time Smriti spoke to her husband, who had been posted to Siachen just a couple of months after their wedding.
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Captain Singh, a graduate of Armed Forces Medical College, Pune, was posted to Siachen for his first assignment as part of Operation Meghdoot, where he tragically lost his life. His wife, Smriti, recalled their last conversation on July 18, dreaming about their future together before receiving the devastating news of his death the next morning.
During the Investiture ceremony, the Singh family met Rahul Gandhi, who empathized with their loss, having experienced similar personal tragedies. Captain Singh’s father, Ravi Pratap Singh, emphasized the need for unity among soldiers and supported Rahul Gandhi’s stance against the Agnipath recruitment scheme.
Rahul Gandhi had criticized the Agnipath scheme in Parliament, calling it a “use and throw” policy. This sparked controversy, with Defence Minister Rajnath Singh defending the scheme and asserting that compensation had been provided to families like that of Agniveer Ajay Kumar, who died in January.
The government denied allegations, stating the Defence Minister asserted that Rs 1 crore was paid as compensation to the family. However, the family disputed this, claiming they received no assistance from the Centre, only some aid from the Punjab government.
On ‘X’ (formerly Twitter), the Indian Army stated that Rs. 98.39 lakh had been disbursed to the family, but did not detail how this amount was divided. Experts familiar with the army and the Agnipath scheme noted that approximately Rs. 48 lakh of this sum was from insurance benefits entitled to the soldier, not classified as compensation.