Three years after students famously took to the streets of Montreal to protest proposed university tuition hikes in 2012, thousands of residents, among them students, teachers, and other workers, are rallying once more in Quebec's largest city against the government's proposed austerity measures that seek to cut spending on education, health, and social services.

The series of protests began on March 23 after the Quebec's Liberal government unveiled its 2015 budget last week. Demonstrators in the predominantly French-speaking province to the east of Canada have vowed to carry out more protests until April 7 as part of a movement that has been dubbed Printemps 2015 (Spring 2015).

According to the new budget, education will receive a mere 0.2 percent raise in 2015, which many critics see as a thinly veiled cut, once inflation is factored in. Spending on health would also only increase by only 1.4 percent under the budget.

Thursday's march is believed to have been the largest since the start of the demonstrations. While head counts vary, organizers claimed some 70,000 students took part in the rally, according to CBC Canada. Many of the students, teachers, and other workers that turned up, did so under the direction of unions like ASSÉ, Quebec's powerful FTQ labor union, and the CSN labour union, which represents 325,000 workers.

A group of students even marched while carrying a paper mâché head of Couillard, which was decked with devil horns and ears stuffed with banknotes.

Des manifestants transportent la 'tête' de Philippe Couillard sur des planches. - Dominic Brassard (@Brassardd)April 2, 2015

Despite the visible tensions, the rally remained largely peaceful, in contrast to a march last week, where clashes erupted between protesters and the Montreal police. Naomie Tremblay-Trudeau, an 18-year-old student taking part a rally on March 26 reportedly sustained facial injuries after a police officer fired a tear gas canister at students from close range.

Report by Louis-Philippe Boulianne / YouTube Impact Campus

Quebec's police ethics commissioner has since ordered an investigation into the incident.

L'étudiante blessée au visage traumatisée par le geste du policier, selon son avocat - Journal de Montréal (@JdeMontreal)March 31, 2015

"The student, who was injured in the face, has been left traumatized by the police officer's action, says her lawyer."

The Spring 2015 protests have been fueled by the legacy of activism left over from the Printemps Érable (Maple Spring) - a series of student union-led demonstrations in 2012 against a proposal by the Liberal government of Jean Charest to raise university tuition fees.

As well as protesting Quebec premier Philippe Couillard's proposed cuts, the movement has also championed environmental issues, positioning itself against fracking and future hydrocarbon developments in the region.

Despite the momentum, Spring 2015 has not yet reached the levels of mobilization observed in 2012, when some 100,000 reportedly took to the streets.