Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw has appealed for calm after a train was set on fire and demonstrations were staged at a couple of stations on Wednesday, marking the third day of unrest in Bihar against a railway jobs exam.
What is the controversy about: top points
The protests concern the Railway Recruitment Board's Non-Technical Popular Categories (RRB-NTPC) exam 2021. Students are opposing 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, results for which were released on January 15.
Around 1.25 crore candidates had applied for the exams that had advertised over 35,000 posts from level 2 to level 6, with starting pay ranging from Rs 19,900 to Rs 35,400 per month. Around 60 lakh people appeared for the exam.
The Railways has decided to suspend the tests after protests turned violent. It has also formed a high level committee to examine the grievances of those who have cleared the exams under different railway recruitment boards (RRBs) and those who have failed the same.
The candidates can lodge their concerns and suggestions to the committee at rrbcommittee@railnet.gov.in, the railways has said.
Candidates have been given three weeks' time, up to February 16, to submit their concerns. The committee, after examining these concerns, will submit their recommendations by March 4, 2022.
