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The two-day general strike in the Capital took a violent turn today when a group of protesters pelted stones at over a dozen factories and offices in an industrial area in south Delhi.
Trouble erupted in Okhla Industrial Area in the afternoon, a day after violence rocked the industrial area in nearby Noida.
Alleged striking workers shouted slogans against the Government’s economic policies and pelted stones at the buildings to force its closure. Six trouble-makers were detained, a senior police official said.
Commuters continued to face hardships as a majority of auto-rickshaws and taxis stayed off the road in support of the two-day nationwide strike since yesterday called by 11 trade unions.
Students and office-goers were the hardest hit as auto-rickshaw and taxi drivers either refused to go or overcharged.
Various industrial units and banks either remained closed or witnessed thin attendance, while markets and commercial areas remained open.
Yesterday, the strike had evoked a mixed response. Five major auto-rickshaw and taxi unions in the city have joined the strike to demand a hike in auto and taxi fares.
Long queues were seen at Metro stations. DTC services were near normal though a section of the employees extended support to the strike.
“It was difficult to travel in Metro as trains were jam-packed. Passengers even struggled to get inside the Rajiv Chowk Metro Station because of heavy rush,” said Dipali, who travelled from Connaught Place to Delhi University.
DTC has deployed over 5,000 buses to ferry passengers. Another 3,000 private buses, including 1,870 mini-buses, 283 Metro feeder buses and around 800 contract carriage buses, were also pressed into service.
“I had to wait for a bus for around one hour as there were no taxis and auto-rickshaws available,” said Ranjit Jha, a resident of Moti Bagh, who works at a government office in Central Secretariat.
The Delhi Government has cancelled the leave of all DTC employees and asked the senior officials of the corporation to be at bus depots from early morning to ensure smooth operation of DTC bus service.
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