The Confederation of Pro-Kannada Organisatons has called for a state-wide bandh demanding central government intervention into the Mahadayi water sharing issue.
In view of the bandh, here’s what will be open and shut in Bengaluru on Thursday.
Private Schools
The Associated Managements of Primary and Secondary Schools in Karnataka has announced that all schools affiliated to it will be shut on Thursday.
“It is up to the managements of other private schools who are not a part of our association to either open or shut,” said Shashi Kumar, President of the association.
Many private schools have, however, decided to declare Thursday a holiday in light of the bandh.
Government Schools and Colleges
Deputy Commissioners of all districts have been tasked with deciding whether government schools and colleges under their jurisdiction will remain shut. The DCs are expected to make an announcement on Wednesday evening.
Meanwhile, Bangalore University and Visvesvaraya Technological University have postponed their exams. The exams for undergraduate and postgraduate courses which were to be held on January 25, will now be conducted on February 6.
Transport services
Most public transport services, however, will function without hindrance on Thursday in most parts of Karnataka. However, Revappa from the KSRTC Employee Federation, said, “The drivers of North West Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation buses have decided to support the bandh. Bus services in parts of North Karnataka are likely to be hit.”
KSRTC and BMTC have said that bus services will remain unaffected. “Only if the security of our employees and the passengers is at stake will we stop operations. Otherwise, the bus services will continue as normal,” Bangalore Metropolitan Transport Corporation (BMTC) Managing Director V Ponnuraj told TNM.
The Bengaluru Metro will be fully operational on Thursday. “We will not stop services. If and only if there is a hindrance to the safety of the passengers, we will inform the police and stop services. However, for now it has been decided that the metro will run without any hassle,” said Vasanth Rao, the Public Relations Officer of Namma Metro.
Cab aggregators such as Ola and Uber services will also be operational on Thursday. Although private taxi drivers union had initially stated Ola and Uber cabs were unlikely to ply during the bandh, they changed position.
"We will be working that day. We support the bandh, but we may not take taxis off the road," said Tanveer Pasha, President of Ola, TaxiForSure and Uber Drivers Association to TNM on Tuesday.
The Autorickshaw Drivers’ Association has extended support for the bandh and autos will not operate on Thursday. “Only if there is an extreme emergency, autos will be operational,” Revappa, who is also part of CITU, said.
Home delivery services
Grocery delivery service Big Basket sent an email to its customers stating that delivery slots will be open only after 6 pm on Thursday. When TNM contacted customer services of Swiggy and Zomato, they said that a decision would be made based on the situation on Thursday.
Government offices
The Karnataka State Government Employees' Association has extended support to the bandh. Government offices are likely to remain shut.
Petrol bunks
Petrol bunks across the state will be operational on Thursday. Speaking to TNM, Ravindranath of the Bengaluru Petroleum Owners Association said that the organisation supports the cause of the farmers, however, services cannot be stopped.
“As sad as the situation of the farmers is, our support is always with them but we cannot suspend operations. All petrol bunks will remain open,” he added.
Hospitals and chemists
Essential services like hospitals and chemists' shops will remain open on Thursday. Anantha Subbarao, General Secretary of All India Trade Union Congress said that they were not supporting the January 25 bandh. “Essential services will not take a hit. They are expected to run smoothly,” he said.
Meanwhile, Bruhat Bengaluru Chemists and Druggists’ Association has extended support for the bandh. All owners of chemist shops will wear a black band to show support as the shops will remain open, Mayanna, President of the association said.
Movies
The Karnataka Film Chamber of Commerce has also extended support for the bandh. Speaking to TNM, President of the film chamber, Sa Ra Govindu, said that film shooting will remain suspended for the day.
Several theatres have decided to release the film Padmaavat a day early due to the bandh.
Meanwhile, in view of the bandh, 15,000 police personnel will be deployed across the city on Thursday. Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah also urged residents to maintain peace. "I appeal to all the people of Karnataka to maintain peace on January 25 bandh, which has been called for by pro-Kannada organisations. Stringent action will be taken against anyone who takes law into their hands and disrupts peace," Siddaramaiah stated.