• 2,000 trains were impacted by the Agnipath protests, costing the railways Rs259.44 cr.

    National
    2,000 trains were impacted by the Agnipath protests, costing the railways Rs259.44 cr.




     Digital Desk: According
    to Union Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw, the Indian Railways have lost Rs
    259.44 crore as a result of vandalism and destruction to their property caused
    by protests against the Agnipath programme of the Centre. This was revealed on
    Friday during the ongoing Monsoon session of Parliament.



    Vaishnaw stated
    that all affected train services that were cancelled due to the Agnipath plan
    had been reinstated in a written response to the Upper House.



     



    Large-scale
    demonstrations against the freshly implemented Agnipath Scheme took place
    across the nation; from Bihar to Telangana, railway properties were vandalised,
    set on fire, or otherwise attacked.



     



    Numerous protests
    were seen on the worst-affected East Central Railways, which serves Bihar,
    Jharkhand, and parts of Uttar Pradesh.



     



    The Agnipath
    protests around the nation, according to the railway minister, affected almost
    2,000 trains, and 2,132 trains were cancelled between June 15 and June 23 as a
    result.



     



    Vaishnaw said
    that there is no separate data kept on the number of refunds given to
    passengers owing to disruptions in rail service brought on by civil unrest
    brought on by protests similar to those conducted when the Agnipath scheme for
    armed forces recruitment was launched.



     



    However, he added, "from June 14,
    2022, to June 30, 2022, a total refund of about Rs 102.96 crore was given due
    to train cancellations, and a loss of Rs 259.44 crore was incurred due to
    damage/destruction of railway assets in agitations against Agnipath
    project."