Lukewarm response to bandh in Mysuru

A view of the K.R. Circle in the heart of Mysuru, where business establishments remained shut in the initial phase of the bandh on Saturday.
| Photo Credit: M.A. SRIRAM

Most of the shops on D. Devaraj Urs Road in Mysuru were closed in the initial phase of the bandh on Saturday, and employees of many shops were seen waiting for the business establishments to open.
| Photo Credit:
M.A. SRIRAM

The State-wide bandh did not significantly affect public transportation as the KSRTC operated normal services in Mysuru on Saturday.
| Photo Credit:
M.A. SRIRAM

The presence of tourists was perceptibly low at the Mysuru Palace due to the State-wide bandh, here in Mysuru on Saturday.
| Photo Credit:
M.A. SRIRAM

The State-wide bandh called by various pro-Kannada outfits on Saturday to protest the alleged attack on a KSRTC bus conductor in Belagavi evoked a lukewarm response in Mysuru. Though there was a mixed response to the bandh in the initial phase in parts of the city, it fizzled out as the day progressed, and normalcy returned within hours, and it was business as usual in most parts of Mysuru.

The only semblance of a bandh was visible near the KSRTC bus stand early in the day when a group of Kannada activists staged a demonstration, raised slogans, and tried to thwart the movement of city buses. However, police stepped in and bundled the activists into a van and whisked them away.

KSRTC divisional controller K.H. Srinivas said that there was a delay in the commencement of services by one hour as they wished to assess the seriousness of the bandh. But normalcy was restored and all city, suburban services, inter-district, and intra-district services resumed services within 9 a.m. However, Mr. Srinivas pointed out that the passenger traffic was perceptibly less in the initial phase but it was normal later in the day.

As is the norm, the impact of the bandh tends to be more pronounced in the heart of the city as business establishments are wary of taking chances in the absence of security. A majority of the shops opened by 9.30 a.m. but on Saturday the traders adopted a wait and watch policy and establishments were shut till 10.30 a.m. But as there was no visible enforcement of the bandh by activists, the shops opened. In anticipation of normal activity, the employees of various shops, clad in uniforms, were seen waiting for the opening of the shutters and for business to resume.

In other parts of the city, including in many commercial and residential localities of Mysuru, it was business as usual. Most of the shops remained open on Ashoka Road as well as Irwin Road and Dhanwantri Road, while commercial activities continued as usual in the fruit market behind Devaraja Market. Shops and business establishments on Shivaji Road in N.R. Mohalla and Nazarbad too remained open.

C. Narayana Gowda, president of the Mysuru Hotel Owners’ Association, said that a few restaurants remained shut near the main bus stand for a couple of hours but opened up for business by 10 a.m. He said the hotel association had extended moral support to the cause but was opposed to the bandh. As a result, most hotels and restaurants in the heart of the city and residential areas functioned as usual.

However, the traffic on the road was relatively less compared to normal days.  Though the number of tourists at palace and the zoo was fewer. It may be noted that March tends to be a low season for tourism as it is examination time across the country and hence the relatively low footfall cannot be attributed to the bandh.