[Watch] ‘Agnipath’: Fresh Violence In Bihar, UP; Centre Announces One-Time Age Relaxation

Patna/Lucknow: A mob set fire to two coaches of a passenger train in Bihar on Friday morning as nationwide protests continue against the new military recruitment policy ‘Agnipath’.

The coaches of the Jammu-Tawi-Guwahati Amarnath Express were set on fire at Mohiuddinagar station on the Hajipur-Barauni line.

In Uttar Pradesh, a mob vandalised a train and damaged railway property in Ballia district. Videos show a large group of youth carrying lathis attacking a train and railway property at a station.

“The police managed to stop the mob from large-scale damage. We will act against them,” Ballia District Magistrate Saumya Agarwal said.

Amid the protests, the Centre has raised the upper-age limit for the ‘Agnipath’ scheme to 23 from 21 keeping in view the fact that no recruitment of soldiers has taken place in the last two years.

“Cognizant of the fact that it has not been possible to undertake the recruitment during the last two years, the government has decided that a one-time waiver shall be granted for the proposed recruitment cycle for 2022,” the Centre said.

Under the Agnipath scheme, soldiers will be recruited into the Army, Navy and Air Force on a four-year contractual basis. Only a quarter of them will be retained for longer periods.