Agnipath protests: High alert in Bihar as bandh begins, 1 more dies in violence

Bihar protest
Protest in Bihar against army's 'Agnipath' scheme. Photo: IANS

With protests against the Centre's short-term Agnipath scheme for the armed forces spreading to more places, incidents of violence and arson were reported from various states on Saturday.

According to reports from Bihar, a passenger was killed on Friday night at Lakhisara during the protests. This is the second death after the one in Secunderabad on Friday morning. Though the police have confirmed the incident, details are not yet revealed.

Bihar is on high alert as various student unions have declared a bandh on Saturday. Political parties, including the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), have also expressed their support for the same.

In a bid to rein in the protests, the authorities have resorted to blocking internet services in protest-ridden areas and as of now, it has come into effect in 12 districts.

The police are also taking steps to ensure that the violence doesn't spread to Delhi. Congress MPs, meanwhile, are planning to stage a protest in Delhi at 10 am.

The Railways on Friday had cancelled 234 trains and 340 trains were affected due to the protests till now. The Railways said 94 mail and express trains and 140 passenger trains were cancelled due to the protests, while 65 mail and express and 30 passenger trains were partially cancelled. The Railways has also diverted 11 mail and express trains. Two more trains were cancelled on Saturday morning.

In Uttar Pradesh, 260 people were arrested and four FIRs were filed in connection with the protests. Chennai, too, has reported violence and protests in connection with the scheme on Saturday morning. 

The Army has, however, decided to formally kick-start the process for recruitment under the Agnipath scheme soon, by coming out with an initial notification for the enrolment on Friday.

After issuance of the initial notification, various agencies and establishments of the Army are to subsequently come out with details of the induction process such as the number of vacancies, location of recruitment rallies and test schedules. Army officials had recently said that it aims at starting the training of new recruits under the scheme by December.

Agnipath scheme has been designed to give a youthful profile to the Armed Forces. The government expects that the scheme will bring down the average age profile of Indian Armed forces by around 4-5 years.

The youth joining the armed forces under Agnipath scheme will be known as Agniveers.

Agniveers will be given a monthly remuneration along with Risk and Hardship allowances as applicable in the three services. On completion of four years, Agniveers will be paid one time ‘SevaNidhi’ package.

As the protests don't have an organised leadership, the government is also reportedly puzzled as to who can be invited to discuss the issues. 

Cancelled trains

Railway informs that all trains to Bihar and Uttar Pradesh are cancelled. 

Trains cancelled in Kerala
Patna - Ernakulam biweekly Superfast (22644)

Secunderabad Junction - Thiruvananthapuram Sabari Daily Express (17230)

Partially cancelled trains

Ernakulam - Barauni Junction Raptisagar Express (12522). The service ends in Erode.

Secunderabad Sabari Daily Express (17229) which had begun service from Thiruvananthapuram on Thursday. The service ends at Cherlapally Station. 

 

(With inputs from agencies)

 

 

 

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