Bandh call brings life to a standstill in Agency

Tourism came to a halt in the Agency areas of Visakhapatnam district with the ongoing bandh call given by the Joint Action Committee (JAC) of various tribal associations demanding implementation of the 1/70 Act.

All tourist spots including Borra Caves, Padmapuram gardens, Chaparai, Araku Museum and Katika waterfalls, which are managed by both private agencies and the government, remained closed from Monday morning. Lambasingi too wore a dull look with few tourists being allowed to the area.

Many visitors, who started for the Agency areas on Monday unaware of the bandh, were forced to return to Vizag as protesters closed roads and staged a ‘rasta roko’. According to locals, tourists leaving Araku through S. Kota route were stopped at Chakaligedda area, while tourists going to Paderu and Lambasingi were stopped near V. Madugula and Narsipatnam routes respectively. All hotels, commercial establishments and markets also remained closed since the last 48 hours following bandh call.

It was learnt that most of the hotel managements and cab drivers informed tourists who were in the Agency areas on Sunday about the bandh. Most of the tourists left the tourist spots by Sunday evening or Monday morning.

Many tourists from neighbouring districts and States who reached Visakhapatnam were left disappointed after coming to know about the bandh.

“We are really disappointed to know of the bandh. My children were very eager to visit Lambasingi as single-digit temperatures are recorded there in winter. We knew that there is a nationwide bandh on January 8, but were unaware of this bandh call,” said M.K. Raju, a tourist from Rajahmundry, who came to Visakhapatnam along with his family.

Dileep Padhi, a tourist from Berhampur, said: “Our plan was to tour Visakhapatnam and Agency areas like Araku and Lambasingi. After coming to the city on Sunday, we came to know about the bandh. So we have dropped our plans to tour the Agency and are instead planning to visit temples in Srikakulam district on the advice of our cab driver.”

RTC services hit

APSRTC buses leaving for Araku, Paderu and a few other places in the Agency have been stopped due to the bandh on the two days.

APSRTC Regional Manager M.Y. Danam said that around 50 buses plying to Paderu and Araku areas have been stopped. “The buses will resume plying normally from Wednesday,” he said.

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