Student organizations observed a statewide ‘bandh’ in Bihar on Friday. The ‘Bihar Bandh’ call was given by students protesting against the format of examinations conducted by the Railway Recruitment Board (RRB).
The ‘Bihar Bandh’ remained largely peaceful with sporadic incidents of protesters clashing with police personnel.
However, traffic movement was affected in some parts of the state as supporters of the ‘bandh’ burnt tires at intersections in cities and on highways. Passengers also reported some delay with trains originating from Patna Junction.
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There are also reports that the police have caught the supporters of the bandh who were trying to intimidate the shopkeepers to shut their shutters. However, no arrest has been made in this regard so far.
What are the students protesting?
The protests erupted after the Railway Recruitment Board declared the result of the entrance exam for Non-Technical Popular Category (NTPC) earlier this month. The notification for this exam was issued for the first time about three years back.
Candidates who appeared for the first Computer-Based Test (CBT) say that the Railway Recruitment Board is far from completing the selection process for 30,000 vacancies for NTPC.
They are also opposing the decision of RRB to introduce an additional screening test for Group D. These jobs are not of highly skilled nature and a complicated selection process is unnecessary, with many taking part in the ‘Bihar Bandh’ on Friday.
The protesters also claim that many candidates were nominated under multiple roll numbers.
Top 5 Growth:
1. Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) Friday evening called a meeting Top officials of Indian Railways to review the exam process. Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnav has already announced the formation of a committee to inquire into the grievances of the protesting students.
2. Bihar BJP chief Sanjay Jaiswal wrote a Facebook post on Friday urging candidates to remain calm. “Ashwini Vaishnav is a former IAS officer who started her career by clearing a tough competitive exam. You have actually earned MBBS after a lot of academic rigor. You [students] Can trust us,” Jaiswal wrote.
3. The call for ‘Bihar Bandh’ was not only welcomed by opposition parties including RJD, Left and Congress, but also by NDA allies VIP and HAM.
4. BJP MP Subramanian Swamy on Friday said on Twitter, “It is being spread that the Modi government is now planning to privatize the Railways. This is being linked with the repeated cancellation of employment recruitment examinations in the states. I warn the government to clarify its position. Otherwise, riots by youth are inevitable”.
5. Indian Railways released an FAQ on Friday morning explaining its recruitment process. “Recruitment of remaining vacancies is in process. RRBs have conducted Computer Based Tests (CBTs) for nearly four crore candidates in the last three and a half years despite the COVID-19 pandemic,” the statement said.