Beijing, June 27, 2022 (PPI-OT):The Indian new military recruitment policy called “road of fire” ignited the anger of young people and the violent protests against it spread from one place to another like wildfire, Cheng Xizhong, Visiting Professor of Southwest University of Political Science and Law observed on Monday.

Cheng Xizhong in a statement said India wants to buy more sophisticated weapons from the United States, which are very expensive. So, Narendra Modi came up with the idea to reduce the expenditure on ordinary soldiers, he added.

Prof. Cheng, who is also Senior Fellow of the Charhar Institute, noted that on June 14, the Indian government announced a military conscription policy called “the road of fire”. According to the new policy, the Indian army will no longer recruit soldiers with a service period of more than 10 years, but recruit soldiers with a contract period of 4 years.

At the end of the four-year service, 75% will no longer enjoy the original health, education, pension and other benefits. They will be thrown back to their hometown after a one-time subsidy of a small amount. He opined that this reform has two main purposes: First, more military budget will be set for the purchase of sophisticated weapons and equipment.

India’s military expenditure in 2021 was about 76.6 billion US dollars, ranking third in the world. However, more than half of the budget was spent on the salaries and pensions of military personnel, while this part of expenditure in other countries accounts for only 1/3. In the past, India mainly bought arms from Russia, which were cheaper.

Now India wants to buy more sophisticated weapons from the United States, which are very expensive. So, Narendra Modi came up with this idea to reduce the expenditure on ordinary soldiers.

Second is to make soldiers younger. As we all know, for decades, the Indian army has been full of bearded soldiers. Being a soldier means having a lifelong job. This is one of the main reasons why the Indian army does not have much combat effectiveness.

Prof. Cheng further observed that these days, thousands of young people took to the streets and held demonstrations in many traditional recruiting sites. Violent demonstrations took place in Rajasthan, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh and many other states. Demonstrators threw stones, lit train carriages, burned tires in the street, and clashed violently with the police.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi always dreams of promoting reforms, but there has been great resistance and almost all of the reforms ended in failure. The more reforms Narendra Modi introduces, the more turmoil in India intensifies.

He believes that the reason is that the Narendra Modi’s government represents the upper class and protects the interests of the rich. Therefore, both the new agricultural law last year and the new conscription policy this time have led to nationwide unrest.

With the deepening of Narendra Modi`s reforms, the rich in India are getting richer and the poor are getting poorer. India’s civil strife is incessant, and the whole country is like a powder keg. The people in the Northeast are engaged in armed struggle and seeking liberation and independence.

Therefore, the Narendra Modi government has to stir up trouble with neighbouring countries from time to time. In Indian society, the majority of young people enthusiastically wish to join the army just to make a living, but not to defend the country.

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