Incredible footage has emerged of a huge rally involving more than 500,000 people in, Gujarat, India over employment and education opportunities for lower castes.

The video, captured in Ahmedabad on Tuesday, shows the mass rally held by members of the Patidars, or Patels, community in the city centre.

The community - making up 20% of Gujarat's population - are seeking inclusion in the other backward castes (OBC) category, which will entail more government jobs and college positions.

According to local reports, the rally later turned violent and led to the government deploying paramilitary forces and imposing a curfew in the city.

A massive protest took place on August 25, 2015 in Ahmedabad, as the community of Patidars, or Patels, demanded better opportunities in education and in government jobs.

More than 500,000 people took to the streets calling for a change to the policy of positive discrimination in the form of quotas for lower castes.

The use of "reservation" under the Other Backward Castes (OBC) category in education and government jobs is controversial. Patels argue that they make up 20% of the population but do not get equivalent opportunities in these areas.