India protests over new short-term army jobs enter third day

Protesters throw stones at police and set fire to train coaches as demonstrations against a new military recruitment process spread.

Thousands of angry men have set train coaches and vehicles on fire, blocked highways and attacked police with rocks in India as protests against a new short-term government recruitment policy for the military entered a third day.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government announced this week an overhaul of the recruitment process for the 1.38 million-strong armed forces, aiming to bring in more people on short, four-year contracts to lower the average age of personnel.

But many potential recruits object, saying they should be allowed to serve longer than four years. Opposition parties and some members of Modi’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) say the system will lead to more unemployment in a country grappling with joblessness.

Protesters threw stones at police and set fire to train coaches, police said on Friday as they used batons and tear gas to disperse the protesters in Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and other states where they took to the streets and damaged government buildings.

Nearly 25,000 police were deployed in the worst-hit Bihar state, where the protests spread to a dozen towns in eight districts, said S K Singhal, a police officer. The protesters blocked highways and disrupted train services for several hours.

SOURCE: NEWS AGENCIES