Daijiworld Media Network – Kasargod (SP)

Kasargod, Dec 30: The 12-hour Hartal called by Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh (BMS) in protest against the failure of the central and state governments in arresting the spiralling prices of essential commodities on Tuesday December 29 was a success. The normal life of the citizens was thrown out of gear.

All the shops and establishments had downed their shutters. The Kerala State Road Transport Corporation buses stopped plying, after a couple of initial services. On the night of Monday December 28, stones were pelted at a bus of Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation, in which the bus driver, Vinod, and conductor, Ratish, were injured. They are recovering in a local hospital. Five people were taken into custody by the policemen in relation to throwing stones at a KSRTC bus at Pudiyakota. The BMS workers were seen blocking the buses that started plying in the early morning on Tuesday.

Road blocks were created at the Beach Road in the town and Kanyappady on Badiyadka-Kumble Road. The policemen later removed the blocks. The policemen had arranged for tight security all over the district in view of the Hartal. Attendance in schools and government offices remained thin. The BMS activists took out a procession in the town, raising slogans against the rising prices.