BHARAT BANDH

Bharat bandh hits normal life

Normal life was disrupted in several parts of India during the ‘Bharat Bandh’ called by a combined Opposition on July 05, 2010 in protest against fuel price hike with the greatest impact felt in NDA and Left-ruled states and Maharashtra. Sporadic incidents of violence in which buses and trains were targeted and clashes with police who baton charged the protestors were reported during the day-long nation-wide strike. Several top NDA leaders including BJP president Nitin Gadkari, his colleagues Rajnath Singh, Arun Jaitley and JD(U) Chief Sharad Yadav courted arrest while leading protest rallies in Delhi and Lucknow. CPI(M) leader Brinda Karat and CPI’s top brass — A.B. Bardhan and D.Raja —also courted arrest during the bandh in a show of strength by the opposition trying to make common cause on the price rise issue to corner the Congress.

Mr. Jaitley and CPI(M) general secretary Prakash Karat claimed the bandh was an "unprecedented success". "This protest has been widely supported by the average common man because he is really the target of the government’s policies," Mr. Jaitley said. Scores of flights were grounded in commercial airline hubs such as Mumbai and Kolkata while protesters attacked buses and trains, blocked roads with burning tyres and organised sit-down protests on key road intersections and inter-city railway links. Several trains were also forcibly stopped.
Schools, colleges and business establishments remained closed as groups of protestors hit streets trying to enforce the 12-hour bandh in some cities. Life was thrown out of gear in NDA-ruled Bihar, Gujarat, Orissa, Punjab, Madhya Pradesh, Karnataka, Uttrakhand and Himachal Pradesh while it was a shutdown in Left-ruled West Bengal and Kerala. There was also a disruption of road and rail traffic. Several IT firms closed shop in Bangalore as a precautionary measure.

But the exception was Tamil Nadu, which do not participate in any National events as like before. Even the Congress ruling states like Maharashtra, Delhi too witnessed bandh... But TN, as usual STAYED AWAY FROM THE PROTEST!!! {reasons: No powerful opposition parties; Ruling govt is the best SPOON for Congress}

BHARAT BANDH COST APPROX Rs.2000Cr

The bandh called by the opposition parties on July 05, 2010 to protest against the fuel hike was termed as "Bharat Badh". Early estimates suggest the bandh has cost India more than a thousand crores.

State Wise loss:

Bihar: 50 cr

Uttar Pradesh: 250-350 cr + 150 cr

Gujarat: 500 cr

West Bengal: 500 cr

Kerala: 50 cr

These are the only early estimates by FICCI and CII.