Agnipath protest: Ludhiana railway station vandalized
19 June, 2022 | Pravina Srivastava
Anti- Agnipath agitators vandalized Punjab's Ludhiana railway station during Saturday protests
Anti- Agnipath agitators vandalized Punjab’s Ludhiana railway station during Saturday protests. The pan India protest is against Centre’s new Agnipath armed forces recruiting scheme.
The police claimed they have CCTV footage and are working to identify the criminals who stormed the railway station.
“The police reacted quickly. A total of 8-10 people have been apprehended. They’ve been labelled and misunderstood by some. We have recordings and are working to identify them “RS Brar, Ludhiana’s Joint Commissioner of Police (CP), stated.
Meanwhile, while protests continue in various parts of the country, the administration has increased its attempts to persuade demonstrators to refrain from protesting and to understand the military’s new recruitment campaign.
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh approved a proposal on Saturday to reserve 10% of job vacancies in the Ministry of Defence for Agniveers who match the required eligibility criteria, in an effort to give supportive measures to the Agniveers once their 4-year service in the Armed Forces finishes.
Soon after the plan was launched, the government announced that it has decided to raise the upper age limit for Agniveer recruitment from 21 to 23 years for the 2022 recruitment cycle.
The Home Ministry said earlier today that 10% of slots in the Central Armed Police Forces (CAPFs) and Assam Rifles will be reserved for Agniveers. The Home Ministry has also stated that Agniveers who are beyond the specified upper age limit for enlistment into the CAPFs and Assam Rifles will be given three-year age relaxation. The age relaxation for the first cohort of Agniveers will be 5 years.
Moreover, several state governments, including Assam, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Haryana, Arunachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, and Karnataka, have come out in favour of the Agniveers who will be returning to civilian life after serving in the Defence Forces for four years.
However, some state administrations have decided that Agniveers will be given priority in filling openings in state police forces after serving in the armed services for four years.