Bhubaneswar: An aspirant for an Armed Forces job ran 60 km in Nabarangpur as a mark of his opposition to ‘Agnipath’ Saturday and a large number of agitators sat in dharna near the revenue divisional commissioner’s office in Berhampur in Ganjam district as protests against the scheme spread in Odisha.
The agitators at Berhampur, including many who cleared the physical tests held earlier, raised slogans demanding withdrawal of the ‘Agnipath’ initiative and demanded at least 15 years of service in the Armed Forces instead of four after selection.
The demonstration was completely peaceful as the administration had made elaborate security arrangement keeping in view the violent agitation in different states.
An agitator Dilip Kumar Nahaka said “I have already spent three years in NCC and got its A, B and C certificates. Many like me have also spent two years preparing for the defence service. Now the government is saying that out tenure will be for only four years”.
Besides many of the agitators have already crossed the present upper age limit of 23 years as defence recruitment was not conducted for two years due to the COVID-19 pandemic, he said.
“When the government is conducting all other examinations, including for civil services and even IPL matches, it deferred several times recruitment for the armed forces on the plea of pandemic,” he said amidst vociferous support by those present at the spot.
Naveen Biswas, a youth from Nabarangpur district, who has cleared the physical test and is waiting for the written examination to enter the defence services, ran 60 km from Nabarngpur town to the Biju Patnaik Stadium at Umorkote in the district during the day.
“I request the aspirants not to indulge in violence. There are other ways ways of registering protest,” said Naveen, who claimed that he has been waiting for long to appear for the written examination for recruitment in the Army.
His mother Visakha said “I urge the government not to the shatter dreams of the youths who are ready to serve Mother India.”
The state had witnessed anti-Agnipath protests and violence in Cuttack on Friday and alleged suicide by an aspirant in Balasore district.
East Coast Railways on Saturday cancelled at least 18 trains and short terminated several others due to the protests against ‘Agnipath’ Armed Forces recruitment scheme.
The cancelled trains include the Puri-Patna Express, Sambalpur-Jammu Tawi Express, Puri-New Delhi Purushottam Express and Bhubaneswar-Secunderabad Visaka Express, an ECoR release said.
Nine trains to ECoR region and others which pass through it have been cancelled byother railway zones. These include the Patna-Puri Express on Sunday, the bi-weekly Ajmer-Puri Express and Anand Vihar-Bhubaneswar Express on Monday, it said.
Three trains originating from the ECoR region and 10 others which are slated to cross it have been short terminated, the release said.
No train operated at Visakhapatnam station in Andhra Pradesh from 6 am to 2 pm during the day and at least eight trains will be diverted via Simhachalam North and Duvvada, it added.
The Union government had unveiled on Tuesday the contentious scheme for the recruitment of soldiers in the military largely on a four-year contractual basis for youths between 17 and half years and 23 years.
It is expected to cut the ballooning salary and pensions bills of the armed forces as there will be no entitlement to gratuity and pensions.
PTI