BACK TO THE GOOD OLD DAYS: With autorickshaws and buses off the road in Bangalore owing to the bandh called by pro-Kannada organisations on Wednesday, many people who arrived at the City Railway Station had to depend on alternative modes of transport . — Photo: K. Gopinathan

BANGALORE: The Statewide bandh called by pro-Kannada organisations on Wednesday demanding the implementation of the Mahajan Commission report on Belgaum and the border dispute was total in most parts of the State. However, it did not evoke the expected response in the coastal districts and Tumkur.

In Bangalore, the bandh was total and, barring a minor incident off Mysore Road in which a policeman was injured, was incident-free. Government offices reported thin attendance. Private companies, including those in the information technology sector, were closed and the city resembled Bangalore of the 70s when traffic snarls and pollution were unimaginable.

Additional Director-General of Police (Law and Order) M. Shankar Bidri said the bandh was peaceful in most parts of the State.

In Belgaum, the police registered a few cases after incidents of stone throwing were reported. Mr Bidri said the bandh did not evoke much response in Udupi.

Most parts of the State saw processions by pro-Kannada organisations and activists, while residents remained indoors since most private organisations had declared a holiday. Business establishments, cinemas, schools and colleges remained closed. Public transport, including buses and autorickshaws, were off the roads.

In Belgaum city, the bandh call evoked near total response. Incidents of stone throwing and confrontation between Kannada and Marathi groups in Marathi-dominated areas were reported. Tension prevailed for some time when a group of Karnataka Rakshana Vedike activists threw stones at Marathi signboards.

Mysore, a city that was teeming with lakhs of tourists savouring the Dasara festivities barely two days ago, became a virtual ghost town, as most people stayed indoors and government offices were thinly attended. Hotels and places of tourist interest, including the palace and the zoo, were out of bounds for visitors most of whom thought it prudent to leave the city the previous night.

In Bijapur and Bagalkot, the bandh was peaceful and total. In Bellary, Tourism Minister B. Sriramulu took part in the procession taken out by pro-Kannada organisations. Bidar saw pro-Kannada organisations protesting against the "stepmotherly" attitude of the Union Government towards the State. In Chamarajanagar, hundreds of pro-Kannada activists went out in a procession across the town. In Gulbarga, the bandh was total. Here too, pro-Kannada groups took out processions protesting the "partisan" attitude of the Centre towards Karnataka in its border dispute with Maharashtra. In Hassan, activists assembled near the Hemavathi statue in the heart of the city and condemned the Maharashtra Government.

In Kodagu district, the bandh was incident-free, peaceful and total. Kodagu Superintendent of Police Ramachandra Rao said the bandh was voluntary and no organisation or individual forced traders in the district to close down.

In Tumkur, activists of pro-Kannada organisations stoned a private factory in Antarasanahalli Industrial Layout, on the outskirts of the town. The activists went around the main streets forcing shops and establishments to close down.

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