Rail services were disrupted in many parts of Uttar Pradesh and three buses were torched in Lucknow. Samajwadi Party chief Mulayam Singh Yadav's son Akhilesh Yadav, MP, was detained in Lucknow.
A 12-hour nation-wide bandh called by 13 non-NDA and non-UPA parties today to protest against price rise hit normal life and affected air and rail services especially in Left-ruled states of West Bengal and Kerala.
The 'Bharat Bandh' which began at 6am also had some impact in Orissa, Uttar Pradesh and Bihar. Sporadic protests marked the hartal elsewhere in the country including the capital.
Streets in West Bengal and Kerala where educational institutions were also closed wore a deserted look.
Besides the four Left parties, the 13-party grouping which gave the call for the bandh consists of AIADMK, BJD, SP, RJD, TDP, RLD, LJP, JD-S and INLD. The grouping is pressing for a roll-back in the hike in prices of petrol, diesel and fertiliser.
Rail services were disrupted in many parts of Uttar Pradesh and three buses torched in Lucknow. Samajwadi Party (SP) supremo Mulayam Singh Yadav's son and MP Akhilesh Yadav was detained in Lucknow while leading protestors.
"A total bandh has been implemented in Bihar. All services are disrupted," claimed RJD chief Lalu Yadav.
CPI(M) leader Brinda Karat claimed the bandh is 'very successful' in large parts of the country while Mulayam warned of anarchy by people if price rise is not checked.
Two train passengers were injured as a clash broke out between travellers in Ganga Sagar Express and bandh supporters at Pandua station in Hooghly district.
In West Bengal road and rail services and flight operations were badly affected and shutters in commercial areas were down. Hundreds of passengers were stranded at railway stations and airports for want of transport.
Airport sources in Kolkata said only ten out of 25 domestic and international flights took off this morning. They included flights of Air-India, Jet Airways and Jetlite.
An Eastern Railway spokesperson told PTI that due obstructions put up by bandh supporters at several stations, train services were disrupted at Howrah and Sealdah division. Long-distance trains were stranded at various stations as bandh supporters sat on the railway tracks.
Reports from Kerala said the protesters picketed trains in different stations.
Both private and state run bus services, taxis, autorickshaws and commercial vehicles are also keeping off the roads. However, no violence was reported, police said.
Vehicular movement was affected across BJD-ruled Orissa as bandh supporters blocked national highways, state highways and other roads, putting a halt to plying of passenger buses, trucks, taxis and auto-rickshaws, police sources said.
Rail services were also affected as trains were stopped at different stations for a brief period, they said.
Normal life in several parts of Jharkhand was affected due to the bandh and the 48-hour shutdown by the CPI(Maoist).
The bandh supporters squatted on railway tracks in Jamshedpur, Jamtara, Giridih and Koderma as the railway authorities cancelled half-a-dozen passenger trains in Jamshedpur.
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