Massive agitations were witnessed across all 13 districts of Rayalaseema and coastal Andhra regions on Friday following the approval of Union Cabinet to the Telangana Bill.
Shops, business establishments, petrol bunks and educational institutions remained closed following a Bandh call given by YSR Congress Party and Andhra Pradesh Non-Gazetted Officers (APNGOs) Association. The public transportation was also hit badly with the State-owned Andhra Pradesh State Road Transport Corporation (APSRTC) keeping off nearly 12,000 buses off the road.
The impact of bandh was massive in major towns including Vijayawada, Visakhapatnam, Guntur, Nellore, Tirupati, Kurnool and Anantapur. Hundreds of Samaikhyandhra activists held protests and organised road blocks.
In addition to the forces already deployed in the region, several platoons of paramilitary forces were also deployed to maintain peace and law and order.