India - maoist week against repression in Odisha

Odisha: Life comes to standstill in Kalimela on last day of Maoist protest week
Life in the Red Zone comprising major part of the districtt, particularly Kalimela and Podia police station areas came to a standstill, as Maoists got markets, road transport and banking services offices closed and a curfew like situation prevailed in the naxalite infested areas today, on the last day of the Protest Week which came to end today . Though, the government offices were remain opened, thin attendance of employees were reported. All the shops and business establishments were down their shutters following the Maoist diktat.

Traffic on the always busy Kalimela Road came to a halt today, there was no movement on the road resulting in throwing the normal life out of gear for the last two days. Passengers were seen stranded at different places as the vehicles remained off the road. Many tribal women were seen walking on the road to reach their home turfs on the day. The red rebels protest week had no impact in other parts of the district in including the Malkangiri town with normal life remained unaffected. However, the vehicular traffic between Jeypore-Malkangiri was remained paralyzed during the protest that passed of peacefully today. The week long protest call that began on July 1st was given by the rebels alleging fake encounter by the police on Andhra-Odisha border recently.

maoists hold meeting on first day of bandh
People from as many as 30 villages have reportedly attended a meeting conducted by the banned CPI (Maoist) on the Andhra-Odisha border on Monday, the first day of the two-day bandh. The meeting was conducted by the Malkangiri-Visakha-Koraput division committee of the party and the committee’s secretary Venu had renewed the party’s warning to the five families that the party accused of involving in the killing of two Maoists near Korukonda in Visakha Agency during October last.
The party would not spare the five families but the rest of Girijans living on the Andhra-Odisha border need not fear the Maoists and could stay in their villages. There was no need for the Girijans to flee from their villages, he had reportedly said. Venu also demanded the people’s representatives to pass resolutions in the Gram Sabhas and legislative bodies against the State Government’s proposal to take up bauxite mining in the Agency area. He also wanted the people’s representatives to resign their posts and participate in the Girijans’ agitation against bauxite mining.

The large number of people participating in the meeting was significant since there was not much of Maoist activity in Visakha Agency and one Maoist was killed and some others had a narrow escape from police in exchanges of fire that took place in recent past. The bandh call received no response in the Agency on the first day.