Haryana decides to hike reservation for Agniveers in police recruitment

New Delhi [India], May 5 (ANI): The Haryana Government has decided to increase the reservation quota for Agniveers in police recruitment from 10 per cent to 20 per cent.
A decision to this effect was taken in the meeting of the State Cabinet held under the Chairmanship of Chief Minister Sh Nayab Singh Saini here today.
In its meeting held on August 5, 2024, the Council of Ministers had made several decisions regarding Agniveers, including granting 10 per cent horizontal reservation in direct recruitment to the posts of Constable in the Police Department, Mining Guard in the Department of Mines and Geology, Forest Guard in the Department of Environment, Forest and Wildlife, and Warder in the Prisons Department, according to an official release.
Recently, the Union Home Minister wrote to all States, to increase the reservation for Agniveers in police recruitment to 20 per cent. In line with this, it has been decided to provide 20 per cent reservation in the recruitment to the post of Police Constable. A total of 1,830 Agniveers were selected from the State of Haryana in 2022-23, approximately 2,215 in 2023-24, and 2,108 in 2024-25. The first batch of Agniveers is scheduled to be relieved from the defence forces in 2026-27.

Among the various decisions taken by the Council of Ministers on August 5, 2024, regarding Agniveers were provisions for 1 per cent horizontal reservation in recruitment to Group B posts and 5 per cent horizontal reservation for Group C posts. Additionally, a relaxation of 3 years in the upper age limit has been granted for Group B and C government posts. However, for the first batch of Agniveers, the age relaxation will be up to 5 years. Agniveers were also exempted from appearing in the Common Eligibility Test (CET) for Group C posts relatable to the skill specialization obtained by the Agniveer during his training. This exemption will apply at the time of application in response to advertisements for such posts issued by the Haryana Staff Selection Commission (HSSC).
Other benefits related to self-employment and entrepreneurship include an annual subsidy of Rs 60,000 per person to any industry employing Agniveers, provided the Agniveer receives a monthly salary of over Rs 30,000. Additional benefits include priority in obtaining gun licences, preference in deployment for Agniveers willing to be engaged through HKRNL, and interest-free loans of up to Rs 5 lakh for those interested in setting up their own business or enterprise. (ANI)