People were put to severe hardship as a majority of the KSRTC buses went off the roads following the Statewide token strike called by the Transport Democratic Federation (INTUC).
As many as 230 services, including long trips, were cancelled from various depots across the district. Pala was the worst affected where about 70 services were cancelled. In Erattupetta, 38 services were cancelled while in Kottayam, 17 out of the 74 schedules did not operate.
From Vaikom depot, only two services were cancelled. As many as 46 schedules were cancelled in Changanassery while in Erumely, 26 services were cancelled. The strike put office-goers and college and school students dependent on KSRTC services to hardship and many of them were left waiting for a long time for a bus. The roads were busy as more two wheelers and four wheelers were seen on the road while Autorickshaws were in high demand. Attendance at government offices here was fairly good with only a handful from far-flung areas taking leave.
Stranded
Hundreds of passengers were stranded at bus stations along the Kottayam-Kumily Road and the Kottayam-Kottarakkara route. People commuting to and from the rural areas faced severe inconvenience as most of the buses remained confined to the bus depots.
