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Army aspirants block traffic in Ludhiana over postponement of recruitment exam
Army aspirants from five districts, including Ludhiana, Moga, Rupnagar, Jalandhar and Sahibzada Ajit Singh Nagar (Mohali), participated in this protest march in Ludhiana over postponement of army recruitment exam
Around 1,800 army aspirants, who appeared in the common entrance exam in December 2020, blocked the Jagraon Bridge for two-and-a-half hours while staging a protest against the central government on Saturday. They claimed that despite clearing the fitness and medical test in December 2020, the Indian Army is not conducting the exam for them.
Dates for the exams were announced several times but each time the exam would get postponed due to Covid surge.
Aspirants from five districts, including Ludhiana, Moga, Rupnagar, Jalandhar and Sahibzada Ajit Singh Nagar (Mohali), participated in this protest march.
The aspirants were seen carrying placards with slogans, such as ‘Paper Di Tareek Pakki Kro (fix the date of exam)’ and ‘No Paper, No Votes’.
Aspirants mentioned that there are many aspirants who are on the brink of crossing the army’s qualifying age-limit. If the recruitment exam is not conducted in the near future, they will lose the chance to get into the Indian Army as the army doesn’t provide age relaxation.
Harpreet Singh, an aspirant from Jagraon, said that they appeared for the physical trials on December 9, 2020. After clearing the trial, the medical test was conducted on December 10, 2020 and a written exam was supposed to be held in January 2021, but it was postponed by the Indian Army citing a coronavirus outbreak.
“After that, many dates were announced but each time, army officials would postpone the exams for the same reason,” he said.
Jasbir Singh from Moga stated that many other competitive exams, including the Punjab Police Recruitment Exam, were conducted in this period and thousands of aspirants appeared for these. “If such exams can be conducted, why can’t the Army also hold its exam,” he asked, adding, “The assembly elections are also going on as per schedule despite the surging Covid cases. We will not cast our vote if our exam is not conducted.”
Commuters on the receiving end
Commuters were left stranded for over two-and-a-half hours as the Army aspirants blocked the Jagraon Bridge. The protestors blocked the bridge at around 11am and lifted the protest only around 1.30pm.
A long jam was witnessed on the Clock Tower Elevated Road and the road leading to Jagraon Bridge Chowk from Vishwakarma Chowk side.
Ajit Singh, who was heading to work when he got stuck in the jam, said, “The common man is already facing so many problems, such protests only add to the trouble.”
Rakhwinder Singh, a resident of Model Town, said that despite the imposition of model code of conduct and restriction on gatherings due to Covid-19, hundreds of youngsters were protesting and hindering traffic movement. The authorities must look into the matter and take appropriate action.”
