The State Government machinery in Krishna District came to a grinding halt with 55,000 Non-Gazetted Officers boycotting their duties as part of the indefinite strike. The AP NGOs Association members went on strike demanding the elected representatives of Seemandhra region to bring pressure on the Central Government to shelve the proposal to divide the State.
About 3,000 personnel working in emergency services like fire, medical and health, rural water supply and irrigation were allowed to attend to duties. Personnel of the APSRTC and APTRANSCO boycotted their duties from Monday midnight.
The AP NGOs Association leaders and members congregated at the Pundit Nehru Bus Station at 6.30 a.m. to extend support to the APSRTC employees who boycotted their duties from midnight.
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Along with the RTC employees the NGOs staged a dharna at the bus station for nearly two hours. They played Kabaddi on the PNBS premises.
The NGOs along with the RTC employees moved to the Gandhinagar Tahsildar office and staged a dharna there. The Government employees then went in a procession to the Sub-Collector’s office and all the main Government offices to get them closed. There were no untoward incidents or acts of violence associated with the strike. The employees took out rallies peacefully, but raised slogans against the proposal to divide the State.
Several private establishments taking a cue from the NGOs downed their shutters. Samaikyandhra activists also went around requesting various organisations and establishment to close down to express their solidarity with the NGOs.
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Busy roads like Besant Road, Rajagopalachari Street, Prakasam Road, in Two Town, BRP Road and all the streets that cross it, in One Town, wore a deserted look.
Shop owners in all the business areas downed shutters voluntarily though no bandh call was given by any organisation or party.