The Hindu : Andhra Pradesh News : Bandh in temple town near total

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Tuesday, Jan 15, 2008
ePaper | Mobile/PDA Version

Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh

Bandh in temple town near total

Staff Reporter

Protest against the scheduled area regulation 1/70

— Photo: G.N. Rao

ON THE WARPATH: Pourasamiti members squatting near the Godavari bridge in Bhadrachalam on Monday.

BHADRACHALAM: The Pourasamiti sponsored bandh was near total in the temple town on Monday. Life came to a standstill with all the shops and establishments remained closed for the whole day. The bandh was observed in solidarity with the residents whose buildings were either taken over or sought to be taken over by the administration for violation of the scheduled area regulation 1/70.

The protesters stalled the movement of the vehicular traffic by staging a rasta roko near the Godavari bridge for nearly one-and-a-half hour. Vehicles bound for the temple town were stranded at Sarapaka. Many vehicles coming from Charla and Chintoor and V.R. Puram were stopped on the outskirts. The movement of vehicles was restored following the intervention of the police.

The protesters performed ‘Ksheerabhisekham’ for the statues of Ambedar and Alluri Sitaramaraju before opening the Pourasamiti office.

They also submitted a memorandum at the Sri Sitaramachandraswamy Devastanams in a symbolic gesture praying Lord Rama to allow both the tribes and non-tribes to live together in harmony in the temple town.

Later addressing a news conference, the Pourasamiti leaders -- Adusumalli Jagadeesh, Yashoda Rambabu -- and a host of others said that the stir would be intensified if the government failed to come to the rescue of the non-tribal residents of the town. They said that residents who had been in the occupation of the buildings for decades cannot be necked out overnight.

They said their talks with the revenue officials ended in a deadlock on Sunday.

The next course of action of the samiti would be decided in consultation with all political parties, said the Pourasamiti leaders.

Printer friendly page
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Andhra Pradesh