Youths travel in bus trunk to attend army recruitment rally in northern India, face police action
by Aditi VermaSome youths were traveling in the luggage compartment of a bus to attend an army recruitment rally in northern India’s Uttarakhand has came to police’s attention.
The incident occurred in the Tanakpur area of Champawat district on November 19.
Visuals showed several young men traveling in the luggage compartment of a roadways bus on their way to an army recruitment rally.
According to reports, the rally, held from November 13 to November 27, has drawn a massive crowd of aspiring recruits from states like Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh.
Due to a shortage of buses, some youths resorted to traveling in the bus’s trunk. The incident highlights the transportation challenges faced by these aspirants, who are willing to take extraordinary risks to pursue their dream of joining the armed forces.
The situation became tense at the Tanakpur bus station on Tuesday as hundreds of youths gathered, hoping to catch a bus to Pithoragarh. With no buses available at the scheduled time, chaos erupted, forcing police to use baton charges to disperse the crowd. Several young men were injured but remained undeterred.
Aspirants like Rajendra Prasad, AK Singh, and Rohan Kumar from Uttar Pradesh shared their struggles. “Joining the army is our dream. No amount of hurdles, even baton charges, can stop us,” they said. Many slept overnight at the bus station, only to find themselves scrambling for transport the next morning. Abhay Singh from Azamgarh and Kamal Kumar from Etah described their ordeal. After a night of waiting at Tanakpur bus station, they managed to find private vehicles to reach Champawat, where they hoped to continue their journey to the rally site. Despite the adversities, the youths’ determination to secure employment and serve the nation remains unshaken.