The state wide dawn-to-dusk ‘hartal’ called by ruling BJD against Centre’s step-motherly treatment towards Odisha affected normal life across the state. The commuters faced a lot of problems as the transport system was largely hit due to the protest.

The buses, city buses and autos stayed off the road in Bhubaneswar and adjacent areas. Earlier, the BJD had announced to observe bandh on April 26 to protest against Centre’s discriminatory policies. Later, the party changed the track. It decided to observe a 12-hour hartal instead of bandh. They said that no one will be forced to join the strike. The party has urged all to maintain peace.

However, the locals in the state capital complained of the bandh-like situation. The BJD workers were found on the main streets who did not allow the vehicles to move. Even railway services were hit. The passengers were found at the stations waiting for the trains for a long hour.

Some of the schools and business establishments were closed today. All petrol pumps remained closed. However, there was no impact on the colleges, banks and government offices.

The strike was called after the government expressed displeasure over the minimal allocation of funds under BRGF terming it a “political injustice” by the Centre. The BJD accused Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Congress president Sonia Gandhi of not paying attention to Odisha’s problems.