The Indian Army is conducting its first online common entrance examination for the recruitment of youth under the Agnipath scheme today, April 17. Officials state the online entrance marks a major shift in Agniveer recruitment procedures.

Army PRO at Guwahati, Lieutenant Colonel Mahendra Rawat said, "The technological threshold in the nation has improved significantly, and with enhanced digital awareness, the youth is now empowered to undertake online exams." According to an official notification, from this year onwards, the recruitment will be carried out in three stages, as per a report by IANS.

In stage one, the aspiring candidates will undergo the online common entrance examination. In stage two, the shortlisted candidates will be called for recruitment rallies at locations decided by the respective Army Recruitment Office for Physical Fitness Test and Physical Measurement Test. Finally, the selected candidates will undergo a medical test in stage three. Thereafter, the merit list of the selected candidates will be published.

The online common entrance exams are being conducted at 375 examination centres at 176 locations all over India till April 26. In the northeast, the exams are being conducted at 26 centres, across 14 cities which are Naharlagun in Arunachal Pradesh, Dibrugarh, Guwahati, Jorhat, Silchar and Tezpur in Assam, Imphal, Ukhrul and Churachandpur in Manipur, Shillong in Meghalaya, Aizawl in Mizoram, Dimapur and Kohima in Nagaland and Agartala in Tripura, as per IANS.