Kerala - Thrissur   

Strike total in Thrissur, Alappuzha

— PHOTO: K.K. Najeeb

RAIL ROKO: Activists of Left trade unions block the Ernakulam-Guruvayur passenger train at the Thrissur railway station on Wednesday.

Thrissur: The 24-hour strike called by Left trade unions against the UPA government’s economic and labour policies was total in the district. Shops and business establishments remained closed. Four-wheelers stayed off the road. People were seen riding two-wheelers. Supporters of the strike blocked a few trains at Guruvayur, Kallettumkara, Chalakudy, Vadakkanchery and Thrissur. The police arrested the protesters. The Ernakulam-Guruvayur passenger train and the Ernakulam-Kannur intercity were blocked at Thrissur railway station. Most train services were delayed. A shop in Guruvayur was stoned. Suspected CPI(M) workers attacked a teacher, Thadichetty Govindan, 32, at the Sree Moolam Tirunal School at Chelakkara. He sought refuge in the Chelakkara police station. He was later admitted to a hospital in Vadakkancherry.

At a standstill

Our Staff Reporter writes from Alappuzha:

The strike brought normal life to a standstill in Alappuzha, but passed off peacefully with no untoward incidents being reported till 7 p.m. The first notes of protest came from the railway tracks, when agitators squatted on the tracks to bring the Jana Shatabdi Express to a halt at three places – Kayamkulam, Alappuzha and Cherthala – in the district. Elsewhere, Kerala State Road Transport Corporation buses, private vehicles and even two-wheelers to a large extent, kept off the roads. The State Water Transport Department’s boat services from Alappuzha to Kavalam, Nedumudi, Kottayam and Krishnapuram and those in the return direction too did not operate. Interestingly, shops and hotels in the Zakaria Bazaar region, which remain open on every other hartal/strike day, had their shutters down on Wednesday. So were the rest of the shops in the district. Left parties took out separate and combined rallies in the town later in the day.

Hartal total

Our Staff Reporter writes from Kottayam:

Till Wednesday evening the hartal was total and barring minor incidents, peaceful in Kottayam. According to the police, hartal supporters forcibly closed the Kottayam branch of the Accountant General’s office here.

No one was injured and situation was brought under control by police immediately. Almost all the government offices remained closed. University offices and educational institutions too, remained closed. It was a day two-wheelers dominated the roads. Private cars were also seen sparingly. Buses and other heavy vehicles remained off the road and shops remained closed.

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