Life affected by bandh over Mahanadi

Bhubaneswar, Aug 16 (PTI) Normal life was paralysedacross Odisha today due to a dawn-to-dusk bandh called byCongress against construction of dams on Mahanadi river inChhattisgarh and demanded intervention by the Centre to haltthe projects, even as the party threatened to intensify itsstir. The party also hit out at the BJD regime in Odisha andthe BJP government in Chhattisgarh, holding them responsiblefor the controversy. While Congress accused the Naveen Patnaik government of"inaction" and silence on the issue despite being aware of theprojects on upstream of the river since 2001, the Chhattisgarhgovernment was attacked for "unilateral" constructions. Rail services were hit and over two dozen trains delayedas bandh supporters staged dharna on railway tracks inBhubaneswar, Sambalpur and Cuttack leaving a large number ofpassengers stranded, a police official said. Vehicular movement virtually came to a standstill at manyplaces with Congress supporters blocking roads by burningtyres and putting up blockades. Shops, business houses, educational institutions andoffices were shut in most parts of the state as Congresssupporters picketed to enforce the bandh, police said. Tight security arrangements were made to prevent anyuntoward incident. Many Congress leaders and workers were heldhere to stop them from entering the state secretariat. Bandhsupporters were detained in some other places also, they said. The bandh remained by and large peaceful, barring somestray incidents in Bhubaneswar, Angul, Keonjhar and Athgarh,police said, adding a bandh supporter was attacked with knifeallegedly by a shopkeeper in Kendrapara district. Apart from Bhubaneswar, the impact of the bandh was feltin Cuttack, Sambalpur, Berhampur, Balasore, Bhadrak, Puri,Jagatsinghpur, Bhawanipatna, Angul, Kendrapara, Balangir,Talcher and Dhenkanal, officials said. Describing the bandh as a success throughout the state,Odisha Congress president Prasad Harichandan claimed thatpeople from all sections spontaneously supported the shutdownto safeguard the interest of the state. Stating that the bandh was a warning to the Odisha andChhattisgarh governments who had betrayed the people, the PCCchief said Congress would intensify its agitation as part ofits battle to protect Odisha’s rights over Mahanadi water. Asking the BJP-led Central government to interveneimmediately in the matter, Harichandan said the governmentshould instruct the Chhattisgarh government to stopconstruction of barrages and dams in the upper catchment areasof the Mahanadi river till the issue was resolved. PTI SKN NNSRY