Normal life in the district was affected by a State-wide dawn-to dusk hartal called jointly by Sabarimala Karma Samithi and Hindu Aikya Vedi on Saturday.
Attendance was low in government offices and financial institutions. Only 38 out of the 135 employees turned up for the duty at the Collectorate here, K.Ajeesh,Additional district magistrate told The Hindu .
Educational institutions, business establishments, and shops, except medical shops, remained closed.
Though no untoward incidents were yet to be reported from any parts of the district so far, the hartal supporters were trying to obstruct vehicles on the Kerala-Karnataka and Kerala-Tamil Nadu State borders, including Tholpetty, Muthanga and Thaloor, Police department sources said.
While private buses and four wheelers including taxis, stayed off roads, the Kerala State Transport Corporation (KSRTC) operated one service each to Coimbatore in Tamil Nadu and Mysuru in Karnataka from its Sulthan Bathery depot in the morning with the help of police convoy.
Though the KSRTC authorities had tried to operate a service to Kozhikode from the depot with the help of police convoy, the protesters obstructed it at Assumption junction in Sulthan Bathery town around 10 a.m.
A long queue of vehicles, including the vehicles of Sabarimala pilgrims, was seen at Madhur and Muthanga check posts on the border of Kerala and Karnataka States. Hartal supporters took out Namajapa processions in various parts of the district.
