'Agniveer' Scheme Pushes Youth to Migrate Abroad Illegally

Two youths from Panjab and Haryana who set out for the US through the dunki (illegal) route in search of jobs have been killed by human traffickers in Guatemala after being held captive for ransom. 21-year-old Saheb Singh of Moriya village near Dasuya in Hoshiarpur and 18-year-old Yuvraj Singh of Mohna village in Kaithal had started their journey in October 2024 and were killed in March 2025, but their families were kept in the dark. Meanwhile, eight youths from Panjab, mostly from the Rupnagar district, are stranded in Kazakhstan after allegedly falling victim to a travel scam. The stranded Panjabi workers are enduring extreme distress, including freezing cold, hunger, and abuse. They are allegedly forced to carry heavy loads over long distances in mountainous terrain and live in cramped metal containers without adequate food or safety measures. One of the victims, Harvinder Singh, recently contacted Bharatiya Janata Party district president Ajayvir Singh Lalpura. Seven youths from Rupnagar district, who were stranded in Tajikistan after allegedly falling victim to a travel fraud, returned to India on 27 Oct. Aam Aadmi Party’s (AAP) Rajya Sabha (Upper House of Parliament, RS) member Vikramjit Singh Sahney has claimed the youths were repatriated due to his efforts. Concurrently, a woman (name withheld) from Moga district, was able to return in September from Iraq after she approached AAP RS member Balbir Singh Seechewal. The woman claimed she was duped by a travel agent from Jagraon who had promised a tailoring job abroad but she was forced to work as a domestic servant and was often beaten by the owner. She claimed that around 20–25 Panjabi women are still trapped in Iraq. Tejveer Singh, a farmer leader from Bharatiya Kisan Union (Shaheed Bhagat Singh), blamed the recent Agniveer (short service commission for soldiers) scheme to be a driver for such illegal migrations. He said, 'The trend picked up in Haryana post-Covid. It was obvious for the youth to feel astray when there was no scope left in the Army. It is high time, the union government to reconsider this policy and begin regular Army recruitment' (earlier coverage).