Bharat Bandh on Jan 28 to train cancellations: 10 points on RRB NTPC exam protest

(Credits: ANI)

New Delhi: A passenger train in Bihar’s Patna was set ablaze while another was attacked by a group of protesting students against changes in the RRB NTPC level 1 exam as the country celebrated on the evening of Wednesday (January 26) as India celebrated its 73rd Republic Day.

In the aftermath of the attacks, FIR against a popular local teacher Youtuber Khan sir and five others have been filed for inciting violence.

Here is your 10 point cheat sheet to the RRB NTPC protest and what has happened so far:

• The protests erupted due to the Railway Recruitment Board's Non-Technical Popular Categories (RRB-NTPC) exam 2021. Students have opposed a decision by the Railways to hold the exam in two stages, claiming that the second stage is unfair to those who have cleared the first stage.
• Protesting aspirants and students on Wednesday turned violent and set several coaches of the New Delhi-bound Shramjeevi Express train on fire in Bihar`s Gaya.
• The Railways has decided to suspend the tests after the protests, a spokesperson said today to set up a committee to tackle the grievances of the protesting students.
• Candidates may submit their Grievances to Committee till February 16, 2022," the railway ministry tweeted.
• The agitation has affected several sections of the East Central Railway (ECR) zone and has hit more than 25 trains.
• Patna’s Khan Sir, who provides coaching for competitive examinations, has been accused of inciting violence during a protest in Patna and an FIR has been filed against him.
• The railways had issued a general notice, warning its job aspirants that those found involved in vandalism and unlawful activities while protesting would be barred from ever getting recruited in the railways.
• The Congress' student wing workers held a demonstration in front of the Railway Ministry on Thursday against police brutality on job aspirants protesting the alleged irregularities in a recruitment exam by the national transporter.
• Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra condemned the "repression" of candidates for Non-Technical Popular Categories (RRB NTPC) and the Level 1 exams and urged the government to find a solution to their problems through dialogue.
• Student union AISA and other youth organizations have called for "Bihar bandh" on January 28 and refused to bog down despite the formation of the committee to look into the grievances of RRB NTPC aspirants.

The controversy over the exams arose as candidates protested against the screening process of the recruitment drive in Railways' Non-Technical Popular Categories (NTPC) alleging that the exam is designed to favour those with a higher qualification, even in jobs that require lesser qualification.