The public transport system was virtually paralysed as over 500 RTC buses went off the roads under six bus depot limits in the district due to the bandh called by opposition parties for farmers’ cause on Saturday.
Activists of the opposition parties including the Congress, TDP, CPI, CPI (M) and CPI (ML-ND) laid siege to the bus depot in Khammam town at the crack of dawn.
Congress MLA from Khammam P Ajay Kumar, TDP district president T Brahmaiah, CPI district secretary B Hemantha Rao, Telangana Rythu Sangham assistant seretary N Nageswara Rao and others took part in the stir.
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The protesters blocked the movement of buses at the entrance of the depot, foiling the attempts by the RTC authorities to ply the buses bound for various destinations in the morning shift.
Similar protest demonstrations were held in Bhadrachalam town and elsewhere in the district.
This has forced the authorities to suspend little over 300 bus services across the district in the morning shift, sources said.
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This apart, the inter-district and inter-State buses remained confined to the bus depots in view of the dawn to dusk bandh.
However, the private vehicles including autorickshaws plied normally in most parts of the district providing solace for the passengers hit hard by the non-operation of RTC bus services owing to bandh.
Most of shops and other business establishments remained closed in Khammam and elsewhere in the district.