Protest against rly exam turns violent in Bihar, Centre to probe charge

A train was set on fire and demonstrations were staged at a couple of stations on Wednesday (January 26), marking the third day of unrest in Bihar against alleged anomalies in the tests conducted by the Railway Recruitment Board for the Non-Technical Popular Categories (NTPC).

Protesters said only one exam was mentioned in a 2019 notification. The Railways Ministry has clarified that the second stage exam was clearly mentioned in the notification.

Meanwhile, the government has suspended the exam and has set up a committee to tackle the grievances of the protesting students.

Earlier, a crowd stormed the Gaya Junction, raising slogans, and set fire to the Bhabhua-Patna Inter City Express, though nobody was injured.

East Central Railway CPRO Rajesh Kumar told PTI-Bhasha, “The rakes were empty and parked inside the yard when miscreants set a coach on fire. It has not resulted in disruption of rail traffic.” Gaya SSP Aditya Kumar said some of the agitators were taken into custody.

“We have brought the situation at Gaya Junction under control. Some protesters have been taken into custody. Action will be taken after the arsonists are identified,” Kumar said.

Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw promised students that their grievances would be looked into. “I request students not to take the law into their hands. We will seriously address the grievances and concerns raised by them,” the minister said. Vaishnaw said he has taken up the matter with the Railway Recruitment Board chairmen. “An email address has been set up for this purpose. The committee will go to different parts of the country and listen to grievances,” the minister said.

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The East Central Railway stated that demonstrations were also witnessed at Taregana, on the outskirts of Patna, and at Jehanabad though agitators there were pacified without much trouble.

“The Railways is requesting people to stay calm and place their grievances before the high-powered committee that has been set up to look into their concerns,” said East Central Railway CPRO Rajesh Kumar.

Over one crore aspirants appeared for the exams that had advertised over 35,000 posts with pay range between ₹ 19,900 and ₹ 35,400 a month.

(With inputs from agencies)