No let-up in protests in R’seema,Andhra

Hyderabad,Dec 12:The Telangana separate statehood demand emboldened by the indefinite fast launched by TRS supremo K Chandrasekhar Rao  and the subsequent announcement by the Centre to commence the bifurcation process, on December 10 coinciding with AICC president Sonia Gandhi’s birthday,triggered bandhs and protests dividing Andhra Pradesh on the basis of polarized regions.The protests and bandhs continued for the second day on Saturday, affecting normal life in the coastal Andhra and Rayalseema regions of the State. Thousands of passengers had a difficult time as the Andhra Pradesh State Road Transport Corporation suspended its services in both the regions.

 Schools, colleges, shops and other business establishments also remained closed.The fast launched by students on Andhra University Campus in Visakhapatnam for a united Andhra Pradesh is snowballing into a major crisis. Students of some colleges have begun relay hunger strike  at places.Protesters are also under way and demos are being organized in the City of Destiny in the day.Hunger strikes have also been conducted in Chittot, Kurnool and Kadapa districts of Rayalaseema region.Backin Vijayawada,banks,ATMs and business houses have been closed voluntarily on Friday and Saturday. APSRTC deputy traffic manger Sudhakar told newsmen in Vijayawada on Saturday that a decision on resuming services would be taken in the afternoon after studying the situation.Meanwhile, Union Home Secretary G.K Pillai  indicated that the continuing agitation in the state will die down soon once everybody understood the process of formation of a new state.

The State Assembly on Friday passed a resolution urging all parties and the people in the state to exercise restraint in the face of increased unrest among the people concernig the bifurcation of Andhra Pradesh.On Friday, Pillai announced that Hyderabad which is geographically in the Telangana region would become the capital of the new state. He later said that the Centre is seized of the issue and a decision would be taken soon.The issue has become a hot issue with some parliamentarians from the state suggesting that the city, known for its information technology sector, should be turned into a Union territory.