Second Tour of Duty for Agniveers Called a Diwali Gift

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh spent the eve of Diwali with Indian Air Force personnel at Air Force Station, Bagdogra in West Bengal, where he asked the armed forces to hold the highest level of operational readiness against threats that no longer arrive only across a border.

Second Tour of Duty for Agniveers

The Defence Minister spoke about the Union Cabinet's clearance of the Second Tour of Duty for Agniveers, describing it as a significant Diwali present for them. Under the decision, an Agniveer who finishes the two-year engagement period will get a further chance to serve the country. All Agniveers will be able to seek enrolment as regular soldiers once that period ends, provided they are willing and meet the selection criteria laid down for them. He presented the step as proof of the Government's concern for service personnel and for the families who stand behind them.

The new shape of warfare

Shri Singh said the security picture has grown far more tangled, and that conflict now reaches past conventional engagements into asymmetric warfare, proxy wars, cyber attacks, swarms of drones, information operations and the management of narratives. He asked the forces to build up three strengths in particular: domain awareness, cyber resilience and information integrity. An adversary, he warned, often sidesteps a straight fight and looks instead for a weak point, using social media to plant doubt among local people and among soldiers themselves. That, he said, makes a soldier's task larger than an ordinary one.

Why Bagdogra matters

The Minister called the Bagdogra region strategically important and a vital link in the country's security architecture, above all for the North-East. The Air Warriors posted there, he said, act as a firm shield for the eastern sector, and their preparedness underpins stability across the region. He added that discipline and courage stay indispensable whatever technology arrives, since the bearing, speech and restraint of service personnel shape how the military is seen locally. He urged them to deepen their ties with people living in and around Bagdogra, remarking that the more they engage with the community, the weaker an adversary's designs become.

Aatmanirbhar Bharat in defence

Restating the Government's resolve on Aatmanirbhar Bharat, he pointed to the widening role of Indian start-ups and industry in building drones, anti-drone systems and advanced military equipment, and praised the forces for taking up indigenous technology and new skills in drone flying and cyber security. A military that leans further on technology, he said, will be better placed for the challenges ahead.

Who was present

The Minister conveyed Diwali greetings to the Air Warriors and their families and wished them health and prosperity, noting that they stay at their posts guarding fellow citizens even while they miss their own households during the festival.