The Hindu : Andhra Pradesh / Hyderabad News : TDP, Left block traffic on highways

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Sunday, Dec 12, 2010
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Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh - Hyderabad

TDP, Left block traffic on highways

Special Correspondent

Opposition parties seek steps to rescue farmers who suffered huge losses due to untimely rains

Movement of vehicular traffic on several National Highways paralysed
N. Chandrababu Naidu takes out a padayatra from NTR Ghat to the Assembly

- PHOTOS: CH. VIJAYA BHASKAR & Nagara Gopal

United stand: Policemen lifting CPI (M) State secretary B.V. Raghavulu in Vijayawada on Saturday. (Right) TDP chief

HYDERABAD: The Telugu Desam and the Left parties on Saturday staged rasta rokos and road blockades on national highways demanding immediate steps to rescue the farmers who suffered huge losses due to untimely rains and floods.

Movement of vehicular traffic on several national highways was paralysed by these demonstrations by the parties who are demanding payment of compensation to farmers who suffered huge losses in the rains and remunerative prices for their produce. Several leaders were arrested as the protest put road users to severe hardship as vehicles were stranded on important highways including those connecting Chennai-Kolkata and Kadapa-Bangalore.

Opposition leader N. Chandrababu Naidu led the protest taking out a padayatra from NTR Ghat to the Assembly. Praja Rajyam Party president K. Chiranjeevi too criticised the government for its “miserable failure” to help the farmers by ensuring relaxation of rules pertaining to crop insurance scheme.

B.V. Raghavulu arrested

CPI (M) State secretary B.V. Raghavulu led the protestors in Vijayawada in staging a rasta roko on NH-9 demanding compensation to farmers who suffered damages to their crops.

Mr. Raghavulu was arrested by the police along with other protestors, including CPI former MLA K. Subba Raju.

A high drama was witnessed in Ongole when the agitating leaders, including TDP Polit Bureau member Siddha Raghava Rao, were forcibly lifted into waiting police vehicles.

The unrelenting activists raised slogans against the police ‘high handedness'. Senior TDP leader K. Yerran Naidu, who led the protestors in Srikakulam district in staging a rasta roko for over two hours, alleged that the two Ministers from the district failed to come to the rescue of the farmers who suffered 90 per cent crop loss.

Road blockades were organised in Adilabad, Medak, Mahbubnagar, Kadapa, Anantapur and other districts while a total bandh was observed in Zaheerabad.

CPI senior leader Chada Venkat Reddy led the protestors at Karimnagar while CPI (M) senior leader M.A. Gafoor organised the demonstration in Kurnool.

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