Central trade unions have claimed that more than 20 crore people participated in a two-day nationwide general strike called to protest the Centre’s “anti-worker, anti-national” policies.
A few incidents of violence marred the second day of the strike, which affected transport, banking and postal services as well as industrial activity in several parts of the country.
“Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Odisha, Puducherry, Kerala were reported to be completely shut down on both the days. Bihar and Goa were on industrial strike on 8th January, but have been totally shut down on Wednesday,” said a statement issued by leaders of the 10 central unions.
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The only major central union which did not participate in the strike call was the RSS-affiliated Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh.
Large parts of Kerala were crippled by the shutdown, which was mostly peaceful but for an attack by strike supporters on a branch of the State Bank of India near the Secretariat. Attackers threatened office staff and damaged office equipment.
The CPI(M) and the Joint Action Council of Trade Unions condemned the attack.
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Public transport including buses, taxis and autos remained off the roads, while strike supporters blocked trains at several places, leading to delays.
BEST stir hits people
In Mumbai, an indefinite strike observed by 32,000 employees of BEST, the city’s public bus service affected lakhs of commuters.
Both city and interstate bus services were disrupted in Karnataka, while PTI reported that trains were halted and delayed by blockades in the Eastern Railway Zone.
Banking services were partially affected for the second straight day, with the All India Bank Employees' Association (AIBEA) and Bank Employees’ Federation of India supporting the strike.
Cash transactions, remittances, forex transactions and cheque clearances to the tune of ₹20,000 crore were affected, according to the AIBEA.
“Electricity generation and distribution, coal extraction and movement, non-coal mining, iron ore mining and steel production got affected,” said the unions’ statement.
“Oil extraction, refining and marketing, along with LPG supply in the entire eastern and northern sector was completely disrupted. Even supply of aviation fuel was affected, resulting in cancellation of many flights.”
Rallies and demonstrations were held across the country, with participation from formal and unorganised sector workers, as well as support from farmers in rural areas.
According to the All India Kisan Sabha, around one lakh persons were detained and arrested for participating in road blockade in around 500 places in Tamil Nadu alone.