Bandh called by lawyers in Talcher total

Odisha Channel Bureau Talcher, July 28: The day-long bandh in Talcher industrial belt called by the local lawyers’ association demanding establishment of medical college by Mahanadi coalfield Limited (MCL) from this year was total and peaceful today.The worse hit was Talcher coalfield which accounts for 60 per cent coal production of MCL.All the nine coal mines were shut down by strikers.Coal was neither produced nor dispatched to any place either by rail or road.However, two power stations of NTPC worked normally even if coal supply was hit during the today.The bandh supporters besides closing all educational institutions stopped traffic on national highway and stopped some trains at Talcher station.In the morning, lawyers backed by locals trooped out to various destinations despite rain and paralysed the coal belt.“The one day strike is total and peaceful.We will sit and chalk out our future course of action after today.We need the functioning of the promised medical college and hospital from this year as the memorandum of understanding between state government and MCL was signed in March 2014,” said Santosh Kumar Sahu, the bar association president.Police had made elaborate arrangements with the deployment of five platoons of armed police to ensure law and order in the coal belt.SDPO Kailash Chandra Parida claimed there was no untoward incident or arrest during the bandh.The lawyers of Talcher resorted to the one-day strike in the coal belt as per their prior announcement demanding functioning of the medical college this year.