Chief Minister seeks Prime Minister’s intervention to end impasse
Bengaluru: Normal life in the city and most parts of the state was affected on Friday by the dawn-to-dusk Karnataka bandh called by pro-Kannada outfits, to protest against the Supreme Court’s direction to release Cauvery water to Tamil Nadu.
A few activists of pro-Kannada organisations who tried to enter the departure terminal of the Kempegowda International Airport and the railway station here were stopped and detained by the police. Transport services have been hit with government buses staying off the roads while auto-rickshaw and cab unions have extended their support to the bandh.
Metro services in the country’s IT hub have also been halted. People who reached the city from distant places and those travelling towards the airport are facing difficulties in reaching their destination with no mode of connectivity.
Educational institutions have declared a holiday today.
Attendance at government offices was comparatively less on Friday as officials had informed that it will not be “compulsory” to work on Friday.
While some private companies have declared a holiday today, others are making alternate arrangements for employees to “work from home”. Petrol bunks, hotels, malls and other commercial establishments remained shut, besides banks services were also hit. Karnataka Cable Operators Association which is supporting the strike has said Tamil TV channels will not be aired. The bandh has evoked a positive response from various parts of the state including Mandya, Mysuru, Ballari, Koppala, Chikkaballapura, Dharwad and Kolar.
Meanwhile, with the “extreme unrest” in Karnataka over release of Cauvery water to Tamil Nadu, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Friday requested Prime Minister Narendra Modi to call forthwith “on a few hours notice” a meeting of chief ministers of the two states to end the impasse.
As the Cauvery row hotted up with the state observing a 12-hour bandh today, Siddaramaiah dashed off a missive to Modi saying that the “unrest”, if continued, would have a serious impact on the state’s economy as also the IT economy which brings enormous revenue and foreign exchange to the country.
“By this communication, I earnestly request you not only as Prime Minister, but as Head of the entire Federal system, to call a meeting of the Chief Ministers of the States (forthwith on a few hours notice) to resolve the impasse,” Siddaramaiah said in the letter released to the media here.
He pointed to a precedent of December 1995, where under similar circumstances of deficit flows, the Supreme Court had requested the Prime Minister to resolve the issue.
“The Supreme Court by order dated 28 December, 1995 requested the Prime Minister to resolve the issue of implementation of its order, which was then duly done to the satisfaction of all parties,” he said. (PTI)