Anger over Agnipath scheme simmers

New Delhi: Despite Centre's steps to assuage concerns over the Agnipath army recruitment scheme, there was no let-up in the protests in some states. The protests were very intense in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, West Bengal, Haryana, Rajasthan and Odisha.

In Delhi, Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi and other party leaders held a 'Satyagrah' in protest against the scheme.

The Opposition maintained the pressure on the government, pressing for the immediate withdrawal of the recruitment plan. Rashtriya Janata Dal leader Tejashwi Yadav demanded that the Centre should clear the doubts over the scheme, while Congress leader Sachin Pilot said it should be withdrawn for wider consultations to avoid a repeat of the farm laws episode.

Over 360 trains were cancelled across India as deadly violence by armed forces aspirants upset with the new programme continued in several states. The railways have suffered massive losses during protests over the last four days.

Mobs set ablaze Taregana railway station in Bihar during a bandh on Saturday and vandalised Ludhiana railway station in Punjab, as protesters continued to target railway properties on the fourth day of the stir and blocked roads and railway tracks in several states.

Uttar Pradesh saw pitched protests with instances of arson and stone pelting in several eastern districts. As many as 269 protesters have been arrested over the last two days, with 168 of them booked on charges of breach of peace. BJP-ruled Haryana witnessed more trouble as protesters set fire to a vehicle outside Mahendragarh railway station.

A protest was also held in Sonipat, where a large number of youths blocked the Rohtak-Panipat national highway. Punjab witnessed its first day of protests, with youths vandalising railway property at Ludhiana station and a number of protesters gathering at Jalandhar's PAP chowk to protest against the Agneepath scheme.

In Kerala's Thiruvananthapuram, around 300 protesters took out a march to Raj Bhavan; in Kozhikode, around 500 youths marched to the railway station. Both protests were peaceful. In Jammu, Youth Congress workers came out to the streets in support of the protesting Army aspirants, demanding a rollback of the Agnipath scheme. Agnipath has also faced criticism from some of the Army veterans, who argue that the four-year tenure will hit the fighting spirit in the ranks and make them risk-averse.