Dawn-to-dusk State-wide strike affects normal life

T�PURAM: The dawn-to-dusk State-wide strike by motor transport workers and taxi and autorickshaw drivers on Tuesday to protest against the hike in the price of petrol and diesel, greatly affected normal life.



A �bandh-like� situation prevailed in the capital district as private buses, taxies, autorickshaws, lorries and mini-lorries kept out of the road in response to the strike call by the KSRT Employees association,



private bus workers unions and the joint coordination committee of the taxi and autorickshaw unions.



Attendance was thin in the government offices as the public transport system came to a grinding halt. Most of the educational institutions remained closed. The annual examinations in schools and the University examinations were postponed on account of the stir.



Shops and business establishments downed their shutters. Medical shops and petrol pumps of Civil Supplies Corporation functioned as usual and long queues were seen in front of them.



The Kerala State Road Transport Corporation�s effort to operate the long distance services was not successful as protestors blocked the buses at many bus stations in the State. Around 20 per cent of the KSRTC staff reported for duty, a KSRTC official said.



The KSRTC could operate only 250 services in the State. In the capital, the KSRTC could not operate the regular city services. The corporation suffered a loss of Rs. 3 crore on account of the strike.



Those who arrived in trains at Thiruvananthapuram Central Station and by flights at the Thiruvananthapuram international airport after the strike began, were stranded. The police came in handy for the stranded passengers in the railway stations and airport.