Ministry of Defence signs up with other Ministries to award degrees to Agniveers

Agnipath is a gamechanger scheme for the Armed Forces and it is going to act as force multiplier in making the Indian military as one of the best in the world with its youthful, high-tech and ultra-modern outlook, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said on Tuesday. At an event, the Defence Ministry, the Ministry of Education, the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship, and the three Services, signed and exchanged Memorandums of Understanding /Agreements with various stakeholders to facilitate the continued education of Agniveers while serving in the Armed Forces, and the award of appropriate skill certificates in accordance with their expertise and experience. Under these MoUs with the National Institute of Open Schooling and the Indira Gandhi National Open University, suitable Class 12 certificates and Bachelor’s degrees will be awarded to the Agniveers, respectively, a Defence Ministry statement said. The job roles and skill sets of the Agniveers, while being trained and deployed with the Armed Forces, have been mapped with National Occupational Standards, in coordination with National Skill Development Corporation and Sector Skill Councils, the Ministry said, and based on these qualifications, market-ready and industry-accepted, ‘Kaushal Praman Patra’ will be issued to the Agniveers at the time of their exit from the Armed Forces. In a video message, Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan said that the agreements would empower serving Agniveers to get the maximum benefit from their academic education and skill development.