Hundreds of farmers continue to protest in and around Delhi as talks with the Centre continue over the recently passed Farm Acts. As the protests enter their 13th day, the farmers remain undaunted by the ongoing cold wave and remain camped along the borders of Delhi.
The latest round of talks, held on December 5 had proven inconclusive. Union Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar has called another meeting on December 9.
Against this backdrop, various farm groups have given a call for a Bharat Bandh on December 8. This call to action has received widespread support from many opposition parties including the ruling Maha Aghadi Government in Maharashtra.
The 'Bharat Bandh' elicited mixed early response in Maharashtra today, especially in urban centres, with no reports of any violence. Here's how it impacted various services in Mumbai:
Transport
The public transport services in Mumbai, including suburban trains and buses, and in other parts of Maharashtra largely remained unaffected on Tuesday morning despite various organisations supporting the Bharat Bandh for the repeal of the Centre's Agri laws, officials said.
Services of local trains as well as out-station trains remained unaffected until now, said Shivaji Sutar, chief public relations officer (CPRO), Central Railway.
Leaders of taxi and autorickshaw unions told PTI that their services in Mumbai remained normal.
A spokesperson of the Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport (BEST), which operates a fleet of buses in Mumbai and metropolitan region, said almost 85% of the scheduled buses plied on roads.
"Out of 3,435 scheduled buses, 2,913 buses plied on roads," he said.
Maharashtra State Road Transport Corporation (MSRTC) PRO Abhijit Bhosale said buses plied normally across the state, barring few places where they have curtailed operations either due to the poor passenger response or as a precautionary measure.
"No report of any untoward incident is reported in the state until now," Bhosale said.
Truck operators said the movement of goods was affected to an extent as several truckers chose not to operate in view of the shutdown.
"Many truckers have kept their vehicles off-road in support of the strike, but we haven't stopped movement of essential commodities," said Kailash Pingle, leader of Maharashtra Rajya Motor Malak Sangh.
Transportation of essential commodities like milk, vegetables and fruits have been excluded from the bandh, said Daya Natkar, secretary of Maharashtra Rajya Truck Tempo Tankers Vahatuk Sangh.
Taxi union leader A L Quadros said taxis are plying in Mumbai as the coronavirus outbreak and lockdown had already hit the sector severely.
The ruling Shiv Sena, NCP and Congress have extended their support for the shutdown but appealed to protesters to not disrupt public transport services.
Markets:
All the Agriculture Produce Market Committees (APMCs) remained closed in many parts of Maharashtra including Mumbai in support of the Bharat Bandh.
Dadar market in Mumbai also remained closed today. Small shops, however, were seen open.
Though wholesale markets remained shut, retail vegetable markets and local vendors were seen in many cities, besides public service bus services, taxies, auto-rickshaws, aggregator cabs, a few heavy vehicles carrying essential items, and others providing items of daily use.
Meanwhile, the Mumbai Dabbawala Association also supported the Bandh. However, emergency services were not at all impacted by the bandh in Mumbai.
Asserting that it's "not a political bandh", the Shiv Sena has appealed to all people to participate voluntarily in support of the farmers across the country who are demanding a repeal of the three new central farm laws.
(With inputs from agencies)
