Normal life came to a standstill in the entire Telangana region on Thursday following a 'bandh' call given by the Telangana Rashtra Samithi in protest against the Centre's reported move on Rayala Telangana.
The bandh call evoked near total response in the entire region except for a few urban and commercial areas in the State capital. A majority of shops, business establishments and educational institutions remained closed in all 10 districts of Telangana. The public transportation was also hit with nearly 3,000 buses of Andhra Pradesh State Road Transport Corporation remaining off the road following participating of employees union in the bandh. The RTC was also forced to suspend inter-district services and the Mahatma Gandhi Bus Station wore a deserted look.
The Professionals Colleges in Telangana region too remained closed on Thursday with the managements deciding to support the bandh call.
Activists of TRS, Telangana Political Joint Action Committee, Bharatiya Janata Party, Communist Party of India and other pro-Telangana groups held protests at many places including Hyderabad, Medak, Karimnagar, Nizamabad, Adilabad, Nalgonda, Mahabubnagar, Warangal and other districts.
The coal production in Singareni Collieries was also hit with workers participating in the strike.
Meanwhile, security has been beefed up in the entire region, especially Hyderabad. Police pickets have been deployed at sensitive locations to avoid any untoward incident.