The Statewide hartal called by the Bharathiya Mazdoor Sangh (BMS) was total and barring minor incidents, mostly peaceful.
According to the police, no untoward incidents were reported in the Kottayam district in connection with the hartal.
Private buses and cars in Kottayam remained off the road and shops and commercial centres remained closed. Two wheelers could be seen in large numbers. The Kerala State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC), however, operated services within the district, though the services were disrupted for over an hour on account of violence on MC Road in the neighbouring districts.
Schools and colleges remained closed and the University examinations remained postponed. Government offices functioned on skeletal strength.
Pilgrimage of the Sabarimala pilgrims passing through Kottayam was not affected as special carriages were allowed by the hartal supporters. The police pressed the services of police vehicles to carry pilgrims who arrived at Kottayam railway station to the KSRTC station.
Meanwhile, BMS Activists took out a protest march and dharna in front of the KSRTC depot. District president K.U. Santhakumar, district secretary K.N. Mohanan and others spoke on the occasion. The BMS leaders called upon the State government to convene a meeting of trade unions to discuss the price rise. The agitating activists were arrested and removed by the police.
Protest marches were taken up in Kanjirappally, Mundakkayam, Ponkunnam, Changanassery, Thalayolaparambu, Pala and Vaikom by BMS activists.
In other parts of Kerala like Kannur and Wayanad, the hartal was total and passed without any major incidents.
Sabarimala-bound piligrims undergo hardships
In Pathanamithitha, hundreds of Sabarimala-bound pilgrims were reportedly put to hardships at the satellite towns of Pathanamthitta, Pandalam, Adoor, Thiruvalla and Ranni due to closure of shops and eateries and absence of sufficient transport facility due to the hartal.
Many pilgrims were also found stranded at Thiruvalla railway station and at the Kerala State Road Transport Corporation bus stations at Pathanamthitta, Thiruvalla, Adoor and Pandalam. Though KSRTC had operated a few special services to Pampa from Pathanamthitta depot, the pilgrims were left to bear with the inconveniences due to closure of shops and hotels in the town.
Though the all-party meeting convened by District Collector in Pathanamithitha November had reached a consensus to exclude Pathanamthitta from hartals and other agitations during the two-month-long Sabarimala pilgrim season, the BMS leadership had insisted on not excluding the district that houses Sabarimala from Tuesday’s hartal, stating that the Ayyappa Temple would remain closed after the Mandalam festival
