Andhra Pradesh - Visakhapatnam   

Bandh total, peaceful in city

By Our Staff Reporter

VISAKHAPATNAM, JAN. 25. A near-total and peaceful bandh was observed in the city on Tuesday following a call given by the Telugu Desam Party to protest against the killing of the Penukonda MLA, Paritala Ravindra.

About 200 TDP and Bharatiya Janata Party workers were arrested at various places in the city while trying to enforce bandh or staging rasta roko or rail roko. Shops, business establishments and banks downed shutters.

Educational institutions remained closed and no untoward incident was reported. Police parties that fanned into the city arrested TDP and BJP workers at various places as they tried to enforce the bandh. At Gajuwaka, too, the bandh was peaceful and total.

With Monday's experience of mobs targeting RTC buses, they were off the road for most part of the day on Tuesday hitting office-goers. About 600 buses plying from the region were off the road in the morning. Though plying of city buses began in the morning, with the TDP workers resorting to rasta roko at several places, the services were suspended. Auto-rickshaws plied.

The former MLA, S.A. Rehaman, and several TDP workers were arrested while trying to enforce the bandh near Kotha Road in the one -town area. At Maddilapalem a rasta-roko was staged by TDP in the morning in two spells. The TDP urban unit president, Sundaram Patrudu, the Deputy Mayor, M. Appala Raju, and the Standing Commitee chairman, P.G.K. Varma, were arrested at Maddilapalem.

RTC loss

At Ramamurthypantulupeta, the former MLA, Palla Simhachalam, and the TDP and BJP workers were arrested for trying to stop the Ratnachal Express for a brief while. According to the ACP (North), B. Mahender Reddy, several groups of protesters were arrested at the railway station as they came to stop trains. The arrested were being released in batches.

The RTC Visakhapatnam region incurred a loss of about Rs.30 lakhs for suspending the operations during the day, according to the Regional Manager, G. Ramakant.

The services were resumed in the evening. In the morning 102 buses were taken out for the city service but were withdrawn after rasta roko. The busy RTC complex wore a deserted look. A handful of passengers were waiting for buses to ply.

``With two days of holiday I had planned a trip to Palakonda,'' said Praveen who was waiting for his bus. Even at the railway station the rush was thin.

It was about 70 per cent less than the usual rush for the Ratnachal Express, said Adinarayana, a ticket examiner.

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