Life was completely affected in the city under curfew on Friday with shops and establishments and eateries remaining closed even as hundreds of passengers arriving by bus and train struggled to reach their destinations.
None of the government and private offices functioned following strict imposition of curfew while a holiday was declared for educational institutions across the district. People had a hard time due to non-availability of daily essentials such as milk, curd, vegetables, meat and fish. A Nandini milk dealer said that milk vans were stopped on the city periphery by the police and he was selling the curd and butter milk that were in stock through the backdoor.
While streets in the central business district, which witnessed violence on Thursday, were completely deserted as the police did not allow even a single soul to venture out, areas outside saw the presence of some life with private vehicles moving about. Buses, taxis and autorickshaws were off the roads.
Hospitals, government as well as private, did not have any outpatients visiting them for immediate treatment while inpatient treatment went on as usual.
The police kept a strict vigil on entry points to the city, particularly from the South, as they believed Thursday’s trouble-makers came from Kerala.
Passengers who arrived by trains and buses unaware of the curfew on Friday morning found it extremely difficult to reach their destinations. While some walked, others called their friends and relatives for a ride to reach their destinations.
