Agnipath: Army aspirants stage protests over job security, pensions in Bihar, Rajasthan | Top Points
India Today
Protests have broken out in Bihar and Rajasthan over the government's Agnipath scheme as job seekers voiced concerns about pension and job security.
Two days after the Centre announced the Agnipath scheme through which soldiers would be recruited into the Army on a four-year contract basis, protests erupted in Bihar and Rajasthan as defence job seekers voiced concerns over job security and pension.
Defence job seekers voiced concern about their next step after the completion of the four years as only 25 per cent of the soldiers recruited through the scheme will be retained to serve a full term. The youth recruited through the Agnipath scheme and not absorbed will be relieved without a pension.
They said the recruitment into the Army opened after two years and even after that there is no certainty about their future. They asked what would happen to their future after four years if they were not retained, and criticised the government.
Read: Agnipath scheme will induce never-give up trait in youths: Vice-admiral Dinesh K Tripathi
In the Buxar district, more than 100 young men stormed the railway station and squatted on the tracks, blocking the onward journey of Patna-bound Janshatabdi Express for nearly 30 minutes.
They raised slogans against the scheme, unveiled the previous day by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, until security personnel led by RPF inspector Deepak Kumar and GRP SHO Ramashish Prasad, arrived at the spot and warned them against disruption of rail traffic.
There were reports in a section of the regional media that the protesters had hurled stones at Pataliputra Express, which passed through the station, though both Kumar and Prasad denied such an occurrence.
