In protest against the Agnipath scheme for recruitment in the armed forces, a march was taken out in Dehradun by senior citizens of various opposition parties on Wednesday. The march was led by senior Congress leader and former chief minister Harish Rawat. The march was also attended by the Leader of Opposition (LoP) in State Assembly Yashpal Arya, lieutenant general (retd) TPS Rawat, armed forces veterans, former IAS officers and leaders of opposition parties.

Speaking on the occasion Rawat said that the Agnipath scheme is a fraud with the youth of the country. He said that the unfortunate decision to implement the Agnipath scheme would have an impact on the military power of the country and internal security. He said that the youngsters who were waiting for the recruitment to open in the armed forces for the last two to three years are feeling cheated after the government launched the Agnipath scheme.  Rawat said that when youngsters retire after serving for only four years in the Army, they will face an uncertain future with no benefit of pension, gratuity and other facilities.

After consulting the leaders present on the occasion former CM Harish Rawat announced that  village Pradhans, former Pradhans, armed forces veterans and women would be requested to send letters to the Prime Minister Modi requesting him that the Agnipath scheme should be immediately rolled back.

The LoP Yashpal Arya said that the agitation against the Agnipath scheme would continue till it is not taken back by the government.

Retired IAS officer SS Pangti, Samajwadi Party leader SN Sachan, UKD leader Kashi Singh Airy, communist leader Samar Bhandari and others took part in the march.