Bandh, rains cripple West Bengal

The Weather Gods seemed to be supporting the ruling Left Front government in West Bengal in the 12-hour bandh that was called by the party in the state today to protest the price hike of petroleum products by the Union government.

Kolkata: The Weather Gods seemed to be supporting the ruling Left Front government in West Bengal in the 12-hour bandh that was called by the party in the state today to protest the price hike of petroleum products by the Union government. Since the wee hours of the morning, a torrential rainfall in gangetic West Bengal kept company to the bandh supporters in forcing the people to stay indoors.

Quite interestingly, the rains gave way to a clear sky as the time for the bandh to be lifted came nearer, giving the impression of a secret pact of the weather with the state government.
The city woke up to a dark, cloudy and quiet morning, with the streets deserted partially by the bandh and partially by the showers. Not even a single vehicle could be seen on the streets, and all the shops remained closed during the 12-hour period of the bandh. The downpour teamed with the bandh, as all the trains - local as well as long distance - leaving Howrah and Sealdah stations were cancelled. Long distance trains arriving to both the stations were held up for long at different stations.

While flight services could have remained unaffected had it been a normal bandh day, the rains supported the bandh supporters in the aviation sector too. All flights were cancelled in the morning, as ankle-deep water in the waiting lounge of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose International Airport left passengers fuming. Although Metro services remained normal, there were hardly any commuters to avail of the services.

Schools and colleges declared an off-day and major exams of various universities scheduled for the day were cancelled. Most offices remained closed for the day, and even the IT sector, which works normally on bandhs, was badly hit by today's 'Rainy Bandh'. Even Writers' Building, the state secretariat, remained locked today. The industries in Barrackpore and Durgapur regions, as well as the tea gardens in north Bengal, also failed to function.

Although the bandh was marked by a series of protest rallies and road-blockades, no cases of violence of forcible imposition were reported from any part of the state throughout the day. Talking to Headlines India, IG (Law and Order) Raj Kanojia said, "The bandh has been very peaceful in all the districts. Although we feared violence in the major districts and deployed additional police forces, there were no clashes or forcible imposition of bandh in any part of the state. No arrests were made from any district."
Addressing the media in the evening, Left Front chairman Biman Bose apologised for the inconvenience that was caused to the common people by the bandh, and said that the Left would not have declared a bandh today, if TMC had announced a bandh before Left did. He said, "We would have supported the bandh called by any other party if they had convened it before we did. We request TMC to withdraw tomorrow's bandh."

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