Protests over Agnipath scheme disrupt train services in Bihar and other states

Train services in Bihar have been stopped till 8 pm tonight and will be canceled again from 4 am to 8 pm on Sunday. Officials have said that during the protests against the 'Agneepath' military recruitment scheme, the maximum violence has taken place in the state. Many trains were set on fire in this. Due to this, the demolition of railway properties has caused a loss of more than ₹ 200 crore in Bihar alone.

On Saturday too, a railway station and a police vehicle in Bihar were set ablaze and several policemen were injured in stone-pelting. The protesters had called for a Bihar bandh in protest against the new scheme Agneepath brought for recruitment in the army. During this, violence again took place to make it successful. During this, there was a clash between the police and the bandh supporters at many places.

Despite the new assurances and concessions of the government, youths have committed violence in many states. Due to this, more than 350 trains have been canceled across India today. East Central Railway has made temporary changes in the operation of trains due to violent protests. Railways said that due to the performance, this change has been made in the operation of trains passing through East Central Railway jurisdiction openly from other Zonal Railways in view of passenger safety.

The home and defense ministries promised a 10 percent quota in jobs for 'agniveers' after four years in office. The shipping ministry also announced plans to induct 'agniveers'. It has been decided to give 10% reservation to 'Agniveers' in CAPF and Assam Rifles. With this, it has been decided to give relaxation in age limit to the candidates. The Home Minister's Office has shared information about this on social media.

The police have so far arrested 250 people and registered a case against 400 unidentified people in connection with the violence that broke out in Uttar Pradesh after the announcement of the plan on Tuesday. At the same time, 150 other people have been made accused by the Railway Police in the state. In Uttar Pradesh, there were reports of protests from Jaunpur and Kannauj against the Centre's 'Agneepath' plan and in Jaunpur, protesters torched State Transport Corporation buses and vandalized police vehicles.

Hundreds of youths in Kerala took out huge protest rallies in Thiruvananthapuram and Kozhikode demanding immediate examinations for army recruitment. Army aspirants gathered at Thampanur in the heart of the city in the morning and took out a rally till the Raj Bhavan, the official residence of Governor Arif Mohammad Khan. In Karnataka, police used sticks to disperse the protesters. Police used mild force on youths protesting against the 'Agneepath' scheme in Dharwad, Karnataka.

Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrashekhar Rao on Friday expressed grief and sorrow over the death of a 24-year-old youth in the firing of security personnel at the agitators at the Secunderabad railway station. CM Rao announced ₹25 lakh compensation to his family and a government job for eligible kin. In Odisha, a youth aspiring for a job in the army ran 60 km in Nabarangpur, while a large number of agitators sat on a dharna near the Revenue Divisional Commissioner's office at Berhampur in Ganjam district.

Train services in Bengal's North 24 Parganas district were disrupted for nearly an hour as a group of agitators blocked railway tracks and performed pushups on railway tracks to protest. Police clashed with agitating members of All India Democratic Students Organization and All India Democratic Youth Organization in the afternoon for trying to block roads near the Hazra area of ​​Kolkata, a hundred meters from Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee's residence.

In Haryana, protesters torched a vehicle outside Mahendragarh railway station, while a group of over 50 agitators damaged property at Punjab's Ludhiana railway station. In Rajasthan, hundreds of youths demonstrated at various places including Jaipur, Jodhpur, and Jhunjhunu, while in Alwar the Jaipur-Delhi highway was blocked for some time.

The opposition also kept up the pressure on the government over the issue, with Congress President Sonia Gandhi hospitalized due to Covid calling the 'Agneepath' plan "directionless" and saying her party would work to get it back. Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann also demanded the withdrawal of the Agneepath Recruitment Scheme and said that the candidates who have cleared the physical test in the last two years must get a chance to appear in the written examination to join the Army. Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan also requested PM Modi to put the Agnipath scheme on hold and consider the apprehensions of the youth.