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Chandauli, near Varanasi was the site for a army recruitment camp organised by the army to recruit soldiers from Varanasi and its adjoining districts on 20th July. Youth aged between 18 -21 had thronged the army camp set up at a local technical institutions sports grounds to participate in the gruelling physical and medical tests in the hope of landing a job in the army and serving the nation.

Unemployment being rampant in this agricultural belt, youths of these areas work hard to prepare themselves for these gruelling tests in the hope of landing an army job, the only hope for many who do not have the means to afford higher education.

It was during the physical tests that some participants noted some of the recruiting officers adopting unfair means to give their favorite candidates undue advantage in the tests. The ensuing verbal confrontation took the ugly form of a riot in which thousands of the aspirants along with their supporters wreaked havoc in the area, burning government property and pelting stones at the army men at the camp. Even as the local administration remained a mute spectator to the rioting, the army started firing in the air to disperse the mob in the process of which a aspirant, Arvind Pal of nearby Basila village lost his life. One of the four sons of a humble school teacher, young Arvind had come to the camp in the hopes of getting in to the Army and serving the nation.  An unfortunate death due to the high handedness of the army is what he got in return. Such was the grief and sorrow of the family that no house in the village cooked their meal yeasterday. The plight of the grief stricken parents of Arvind left even the hardened TV and newspaper reporters in shock and even they could not muster enough courage to talk to them.

While complaints of bribery, favoritism and unfair practices have always been recieved by the army at such recruitment camps, nothing concrete had been done so far. The brewing resentment of the unemployed youth of this region is a dangerous omen. Already naxalite movement is slowly gaining ground in these areas. IF this state of things were to continue, such incidents are likely to be repeated.

While it remains to be seen what steps are taken by the government to prevent such incidents from happening in the future, nobody seems to have clue to what will be done to alleviate the suffering of the mother who lost her son whose only desire was to support his poor family by getting a job in the army?

As always, the furore is likely to die down in a few days time and the corrupt officials are likely to go back to their old ways. Nothing will happen again. After all, who cares about the death of an unknown youth from  small village in UP? Who gives a damn?

But someday, the entire nation will have to pay the price of remaining mute spectators to such incidents. The resentment that led to the burning of a few government offices will someday burn the whole corrupt state machinery. The day is not far.