General Strike Paralyses Telangana

Life in the entire Telangana region came to a halt on the 7th day of general strike, on Monday, with thousands of activists taking to the street, demanding statehood for the region.

Nearly 10,000 buses of the State Road Transport Corporation were off the roads on Monday, with over 54,000 employees of the Telangana region joining the indefinite general strike.

All bus depots in the region, including the Mahatma Gandhi Central Bus Stand (MGBS), wore a deserted look. While nearly 3,000 buses were off the roads in Hyderabad, about 900 buses in Warangal, 705 in Nalgonda, 900 in Karimnagar, 550 in Medak and 791 buses in Mahabubnagar did not ply on Monday. Students and office-goers were the worst hit due to the strike.

Although the transport department permitted private transport buses, tractors and lorries to carry passengers, not many vehicles were seen on the road. Bus services to places like Vijayawada, Visakhapatnam, Guntur and Tirupati were cancelled on Sunday night. The additional local trains operated by the railways in Hyderabad and surrounding areas failed to minimise the strike's impact.

According to RTC Managing Director Prasada Rao, alternate arrangements were being made to operate buses.

Besides the deployment of security personnel at the bus depots, the RTC management was also trying to utilise the services of retired drivers and ex-servicemen, he said. He said that the RTC suffered a loss of over Rs. 7 crore on the first day of strike.

Meanwhile, the Telangana employees' general strike began with a violent note on Monday. Incidents of stone pelting, lath charge and firing of tear gas shells were reported from the Osmania University campus.

Security personnel foiled OU students' attempt to take out a rally to the Secretariat. Police fired tear gas shells and rubber bullets to disperse the students. In retaliation, the students resorted to stone pelting.

The situation at Nizam College hostel was tense as well, when the police foiled a students' rally at the hostel's gate.

While a majority of private schools remained closed in the region, Telangana lawyers also boycotted the courts.

Telangana activists also blocked highways at several places. TRS MP Vijayashanti, MLAs T Harish Rao and K Taraka Rama Rao, Telangana Praja Front chief Gaddar and other leaders participated in the highway blockades. (INN)