Telangana Bandh on December 5 called by the Telangana Rashtra Samithi in protest against the proposal to carve out a 12-district Rayala Telangana evoked total response. Buses in all the depots in the entire Telangana region were off the road and the depots wore a deserted look.
With the TRS chief K Chandrasekhara Rao’s call for Telangana bandh on Thursday, a large number of police personnel were deployed in several parts of the capital city including LB Nagar, Dilsukhnagar, Koti, Abids, Panjagutta, Ameerpet, Miyapur, Kukatpally, Gachibowli and other areas. As against 4,000 long distance services, the MGBS depot ran only 40 services. With this, the traveling public faced severe hardships. However, there was no impact of the bandh on Secunderabad Railway Station as all the scheduled trains were running as usual.
With the buses confining themselves to the bus depots, the hapless commuters were forced to approach autos and cars and the private operators used the situation for minting money at will.
The bandh was total and peaceful in Nalgonda district. Educational institutions, trade and business establishments and petrol bunks remained closed for the day. In Karimnagar district, the bandh was total in protest against the Rayala Telangana proposal. The bus crews of Karimnagar I and II depots boycotted duties and staged dharnas before the depots. The RTC employees raised slogans demanding that the Centre declare 10-district Telangana State with Hyderabad as its capital city.
Apart from the BJP, CPI and other political parties, several unions and association actively participated in the bandh. They are: Telangana NGOs, Telangana Gazetted Officers association, T Lecturers Forum, Mala Mahanadu, T Dhoom Dham, T Electricity JAC, T Vidyavanthula Vedika, T Retired and T Mazdoor Union, Movement of Peace and Justice, T Engineers JAC, T Industrial Forum, T Film Chamber, T Madiga Reservation Porata Samithi, T Employees Association, Class IV Employees Union, APSRTC T Wing, PDSU, CPI-ML New Democracy (Chandranna Group), Telangana Journalists Forum, Telangana Rachayithala Vedika, T Agricultural Officers Association, PRTU, Telangana Chraistava Sena, Telangana Communist Party, Telangana Atma Gouravam party, Teachers Federation, Telangana Democratic Front, T Regional Teachers Union, Telangana Contract Outsourcing Employees Association, Praja Party and so on. (NSS)