A high alert has been sounded in Visakhapatnam and neighbourhood in the wake of the kidnap of an MLA in Orissa by the naxalites even while the bandh in Visakha Agency called by the CPI (Maoist) passed off peacefully on Saturday.
The Maoists had given a ‘Bharat bandh' call demanding that the government release all Maoist prisoners from jails and withdraw cases against them. The bandh was almost total till noon, but later the police forced shopkeepers to open their businesses. Owners of private transport vehicles were also forced to come on to streets. Armed police were deployed in large numbers in all mandal headquarters in the 11 Agency mandals. The APSRTC restricted the operation of its buses to the Araku, Paderu and Chintapalli routes and avoided plying in interior areas.
Government offices were closed in Dumbriguda, Pedabayaulu and G. Madugula mandals while they functioned nominally in other areas. On Friday night, the Maoists tried to blast a power transmission tower at Sapparla but the damage was not heavy, it was learnt.
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Bus service affected
A report from Khammam said shops and business establishments remained closed in Charla and Venkatapuram mandals. APSRTC services to remote areas, particularly far off destinations adjoining Chhattisgarh were badly affected. Security has been beefed up across the inter-State border with Chhattisgarh. Police intensified combing operations in Charla and Chintur mandals in view of the increased movement of Maoists in the past two days.