Bandh total, peaceful in Telangana districts

MAHBUBNAGAR/WARANGAL/NIZAMABAD: The bandh called against the merger of seven mandals in Khammam district with the residuary state of Andhra Pradesh was total but peaceful in all 10 districts of Telangana state. Shops and offices remained closed for the day and even petrol bunks and cinema halls did not function till evening. APSRTC withdrew its services in the districts as a precautionary measure.
With the TRS, BJP, Congress and Telangana TDP also supporting the bandh called by the Telangana JAC, normal life came to a grinding halt. There was mild tension in Khammam district when a few bandh organisers pelted stones at vehicles carrying devotees to Saibaba temples on the occasion of Guru Poornima. A large number of tribals joined the bandh in Chintoor, Kunavaram, VR Puram and other mandals that have been merged with AP.
Agitators locked RTC depots in Mahbubnagar, Nagarkurnool, Wanaparthy, Shadnagar and Kollapur in Mahbubnagar district, forcing the authorities to stop bus services. Heavy police bandobust was made outside all bus stations and depots.
In Wanaparty, protesters burnt the effigies of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and AP chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu. TRS Kollapur legislator Jupalli Krishna Rao described the merger as "betrayal" of the people of Telangana and demanded that the Centre withdraw it.
At Kondapaka village in Medak district, TRS workers burnt the effigy of the NDA government. In Nalgonda, the day saw motorcycle rallies while shops remained closed. However, the bandh evoked mixed response in Nizamabad and Adilabad districts.