In the wake of Bharat Bandh call given by some organisations against the Agnipath recruitment scheme, security was tightened at various locations in the State capital of Odisha on Monday.
The CPI staged a protest over the scheme of the Central government at Rajmahal square in Bhubaneswar. The party took out a protest march from Ashoknagar to Rajmahal square.
As many as 22 platoons of police force have been deployed at multiple locations in the capital to thwart any untoward incident. Major areas like Vani Vihar, Rasulgarh, Palasuni, Khandagiri are Baramunda were placed under tight security.
Amid the nationwide bandh, security has also been beefed up in several states on Monday.
Congress and many organisations were holding protests against the 'Agnipath' scheme at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi.
Addressing a press conference, Congress General Secretary Ajay Maken said the party will continue its 'Satyagraha' at Jantar Mantar against the ED action and also Agnipath. He alleged that the police were not allowing them to go to the designated place. Congress delegation will also meet President Ram Nath Kovind in the evening.
Delhi Police has permitted Congress party to protest at Jantar Mantar but with not more than 1,000 people.
Several regions have witnessed terrific traffic jams with public transport including school buses remaining stuck on the roads.
The agitation forced the Railways to cancel 181 Mail Express and 348 passenger trains on Monday amid the protests in various parts of the country. Many passengers were facing trouble after their trains were cancelled amid the nationwide shutdown.
The Cabinet Committee on Security on June 14 approved the transformative scheme of 'Agnipath'.
After the policy was approved, protests erupted in various states including Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Haryana, Telangana, Odisha, West Bengal, Madhya Pradesh, Punjab, Jharkhand and Assam. As the agitation intensified in some places, protestors went on the rampage setting trains on fire, torching vehicles and damaging both private and public properties.
Earlier on Saturday, the Centre sent a note of caution to all states and Union Territories (UTs) regarding tackling the continued agitations on this count.