After 11 days of continuous agitation, thousands of locals here descended to the roads to observe a complete bandh demanding fulfillment of their five-point charter of demands. The demands included setting up a mega steel plant, a medical college and agriculture college in Keonjhar district, upgradation of Dharanidhar Autonomous College to university and linking of Champua and Anandpur by rail.
The representatives from Konjhar Bar Association, Kendujhar Progressive Citizens Forum, Kendujhar Journalists Association, Bus Owners Association, Merchants Association, Truck Owner Association, Kendujhar Bikas Mancha, Kendujhar Surakhya Manch and leaders from Congress, BJP, BJD, CPI, CPM and AAP were seen on the roads blocking vehicles, closing down offices and banks etc. Even all shops, markets, schools and colleges remained closed in support of the bandh called by the co-ordination committee of the associations. The courts in Champua, Barbil, Anandpur and Keonjhar could not function as all lawyers quit their work for the day.
Former MPs Anant Nayak, Madhab Sardar, Rahas Barik, former MlAs Mohan Majhi, Chandrasen Naik, Jayadev Jena and Niranjan Patnaik joined the agitators in different places of the district. Street corner meetings were held in Keonjhar, Anandpur and Champua where citizens spoke on the apathy of Government in Keonjhar’s development and demanded quick action for fulfilling the genuine demands. The goods and passenger train movement in Keonjhar route remained suspended as agitators blocked the tracks at Naranpur and Nayagarh. However, the ambulance service and medicine stores were spared of the bandh which remained by and large peaceful.