At least 250 people have been arrested in Uttar Pradesh over the ‘Agnipath’ protests, which has seen hordes of angry youth, carrying bamboo sticks and stones, storming railway premises across cities and small towns and laying siege to highways.
Meanwhile, protests against ‘Agnipath’ left Bihar in flames on Friday when rampaging mobs set fire to dozens of railway coaches, engines and stations and torched BJP offices, vehicles and other property, prompting the police to suspend internet services in nearly a third of the state.
The agitation is spreading to new centres in south India, with protests being reported from Chennai, Thiruvananthapuram and other cities and towns.
With the protests against the new military recruitment scheme spreading to eight states, the government today announced 10 per cent reservation for ‘Agniveers’ in the Central Armed Police Forces (CAPFs) and Assam Rifles.
The Ministry of Home Affairs also announced three years’ age relaxation beyond the prescribed upper age limit to Agniveers for recruitment in the two paramilitary forces.
The first batch of Agniveer will get age relaxation of five years beyond the prescribed upper age limit, it said.
With inputs from NDTV
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