Local resident Sachindra Joshi, who works in Sambalpur and travels by train to his workplace, failed to reach office on Monday as District Bar Association members staged a rail roko at Balangir railway station in support of their demand for a separate bench of Orissa High Court here.

“Since buses were also not plying, I was compelled to take a leave,” he said.

Life was thrown out of gear as the 24-hour strike observed by the association and the joint action committee demanding separate high court bench in Balangir paralysed life here on Monday. All government and private offices, banks and insurance offices remained closed while business establishments downed their shutters. School and colleges declared a holiday.

Commuters faced difficulties as vehicular traffic was paralysed. The agitators, in large number, thronged Balangir railway station and sat on the tracks. The railway authorities cancelled at least five trains and partially cancelled another two while diverting four trains on other routes. It also rescheduled the timing of four other trains.

Protesters stage a rail roko on the tracks. Telegraph picture

While the strike was total and a success in the urban areas such as Balangir, Titilagarh, Kantabanjhi and Patnagarh, in the rural pockets it was a mix bag. While villages and some towns along the NH-26 and the NH-57 observed the strike, it had no effect in the interior pockets.

Several organisations extended support to the strike call. All the three major political parties such as the BJD, BJP and the Congress expressed their solidarity to the demand and took part in the strike.

Senior Congress leader and leader of Opposition Narasingha Mishra as well as BJD leader Arkesh Singhdeo attended a protest meeting in front of the district collectorate with large number of their supporters. District BJP spokesperson Prabhash Panigrahi said his party had extended unconditional support to the demand for the high court bench in Balangir. He said that during the Raj, the local people had the privilege of having the high court here. “We want the state government to recommend the name of Balangir, and the BJP government at the Centre will definitely fulfil the long-standing demand,” he said.

Congress leader Samarendra Mishra said said: “Balangir is the fittest place in west Odisha according to the guidelines set by the Jaswant Singh Commission, which was set up to look into the issue of setting up permanent high court benches of in different states of the country.” Balangir had not taken part in the 48-hour west Odisha strike call observed by the central action committee of Sambalpur demanding a bench in west Odisha.