Hundreds of students protested Thursday in the state capital demanding a domicile policy adopted for government recruitment in Bihar. The students say that Bihar is behind several other states, including Jharkhand, Uttarakhand, and Himachal Pradesh, that already have domicile policies to ensure recruitments prioritize candidates from those states.
The protesters claim the lack of a domicile policy is leading to higher unemployment and out-migration of youth from the state. Big groups of students gathered early in the morning for a march through central Patna chanting slogans and blocking roadways.
A short scuffle broke out between the students and police when security personnel tried to stop the students from entering certain zones, close to the CM’s residence where they were restricted from demonstrations.
Security was beefed up in sensitive areas and barricades set up to stop the swelling crowd. The student leadership insisted the movement would remain peaceful but warned that agitation could reach an entirely different level if their demands never get addressed.
The demonstrators want the government to make every effort to put a domicile policy in state government job recruitment, guarantee priority to the candidates with local residence certificates, and that the state government address unemployment and out-migration.
The protesters also accused the Nitish Kumar government of being indifferent to the plight of local youth and neglecting to protect their rights to opportunity and employment. One protester told IANS that if the state government did not implement a domicile policy in the state, they would boycott the upcoming election.
The protesting groups have committed to surrounding the CM’s residence and continuing the protests in the next few days. A student leader, Dilip Kumar, stated, “This is not just a protest but a call for justice to the youth of Bihar. If our demands are not accepted, we will launch a full-scale state-wide movement.”
The protest created tension in parts of the city and took place on a day when the entire nation remembers “Sampoorna Kranti Day”. There has been no official statement from government officials yet, although sources say that the administration is discussing how to deal with the matter.
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