Railway suspends RRB NTPC, Level 1 exams after protests by aspirants

NEW DELHI: Railways has decided to suspend its NTPC and Level 1 tests after violent protests by job aspirants over the selection process of its recruitment exams, a spokesperson for the national transporter said on Wednesday. It has also formed a committee which will examine the grievances of those who have passed the exams under different railway recruitment boards (RRBs) and those who have failed. After listening to both the parties, the committee will submit a report to the railway ministry, he said.

On Tuesday, the railways had issued a general notice, warning its job aspirants that those found involved in vandalism and unlawful activities while protesting will be barred from ever getting recruited in the railways. This came a day after protesters squatted on railway tracks in several places in Bihar.

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Students protesting against the Railway Recruitment Board's Non-Technical Popular Categories (RRB-NTPC) exam 2021 spread to other parts of Bihar on Tuesday. Protestors squatted on rail tracks at several places on Tuesday, hampering train movement in the state. Candidates were opposing the Railways decision to hold the exams in two stages, claiming the second stage for final selection tantamounted to "cheating" those who appeared and cleared the first stage of the RRB-NTPC for computer-based test (CBT) which was released on January 15.

Several trains were canceled or ran on alternative routes on Tuesday on account of the protests. The stir affected several sections of the East Central Railway (ECR) zone and hindered the running of more than 25 trains causing inconvenience to passengers. Protests were reported from Patna, Nawada, Muzaffarpur, Sitamarhi, Buxar and Bhojpur districts. At some places angry protestors blocked railway tracks, clashed with security forces and vandalized railway property. In Sitamarhi, police fired in the air to disperse angry demonstrators at the railway station.

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In a statement issued here on Tuesday, chief public relations officer of ECR, Rajesh Kumar, said Durg-Rajendra Nagar South Bihar Express, originating from the Rajendra Nagar station (Patna) had to be canceled for the day. Besides, Gaya-Jamlapur passenger, Gaya-Howrah Express and Patna-Varanasi Express trains were also cancelled on Tuesday. Several other trains had to be diverted on Tuesday, he said.

Upset with the result of RRB-NTPC exam 2021, a large number of students had staged a protest at Rajendra Nagar Terminus in Patna on Monday and blocked railway tracks. Following students protest, train services were affected in parts of Bihar even on Monday. Police cleared the tracks and arrested at least four persons on Monday. "The protesters had gathered at the Rajendra Nagar Terminus in the afternoon. They were alleging discrepancies in the result of an exam conducted by Railway Recruitment Board, which was announced recently,” the district administration said in a release. It said “mild” use of force was resorted to after attempts by officials, led by Patna district magistrate Chandrashekhar Singh and SSP Manavjeet Singh Dhillon to pacify the agitators yielded no results.

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"An FIR has been registered in this connection. It is suspected that the protesters might have been instigated by those running coaching institutes for competitive exams. All those found complicit will face action", said the release.

Meanwhile, amid rising protests, Ministry of Railways on Tuesday issued a statement, warning candidates of being 'Debarred for Life' from obtaining Railway job. Ministry of Railways' official notice with regards to NTPC protests said those candidates found indulging in unlawful activities or vandalism will be rendered 'unsuitable' for Railway/Government jobs.

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“RRB NTPC Protest videos will now be examined by the Ministry with the help of specialised agencies. Upon proper examination, those found in indulging in any of the mentioned activities, will be penalised accordingly. They will be liable to both police action as well as lifetime debarment from a Railway job”, said the statement.

The protesters claimed that there was only one examination mentioned in the RRB notification issued in 2019. They accused the officials of playing with the future of the students. The issue was highlighted when the results were declared on January 15. At that time, the Ministry of Railways issued a clarification in which it said that second stage exam was clearly mentioned in the notification.