Nationwide Strike Sees Limited Impact on Daily Life in Several States : Industrial strike evokes partial response in state

No major impact on normal life due to nationwide strike call by UTs

PTI, NEW DELHI, FEB 12, 2026: Normal life largely remained unaffected by the strike call given by a joint forum of central trade unions across the country on Thursday to protest against the alleged "anti-worker, anti-farmer and anti-national pro-corporate policies of the Central Government".

According to reports, a mixed response was seen in states including Odisha, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Goa, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh and Punjab. Normal life was affected in Odisha due to a 12-hour nationwide agitation, as per reports. Public transport, markets, educational institutions, and business establishments were affected as major roads, including national and state highways, were blocked. The bandh's impact was felt in all major urban areas, including Bhubaneswar, Cuttack, Balasore, Berhampur and Sambalpur.

In Jharkhand, banking, insurance and coal sectors have been affected by the strike, Bank of India (BOI) Employees' Union state deputy general secretary Umesh Das said. Left parties and the Congress have also extended their support to the strike in the state.

In Chhattisgarh, several nationalised banks remained closed as employees joined the strike. Staff of insurance companies, post offices, along with labourers and farmers, also participated in the agitation, affecting operations in their respective sectors. Mining activities in the mineral-rich state were partially hit. However, transport services in the state functioned normally, and shops, markets and most business establishments remained open. Normal life was largely unaffected in many areas, including Durg district in Chhattisgarh, where operations at the Bhilai Steel Plant continued as usual.

Normalcy was affected in port operations in Tamil Nadu, and workers staged protests. Port operations in Thoothukudi and Chennai bore the brunt of the agitation. The industrial hub of Sriperumbudur also witnessed significant activity as workers from several manufacturing units held gate meetings and demonstrations in solidarity with the strike.

While production in some major automobile and electronic facilities continued with reduced manpower, the movement of goods in the Sriperumbudur-Oragadam industrial belt faced delays due to the scarcity of transport vehicles.

In Kerala, though the state government declared a dies-non (a day when no legal business is carried on) for government employees, attendance at offices was expected to remain low as transport vehicles remained off the roads. Apart from government offices, shops and businesses were also likely to remain closed due to the nationwide 24-hour strike. Travellers were among the worst affected, with KSRTC and private buses remaining off the roads. Auto-rickshaw unions also announced that they would not operate during the strike.

Punjab's ruling party, AAP, has extended support to the nationwide strike. The party announced that its cadre across Punjab and the rest of the country would join the shutdown shoulder-to-shoulder with workers and farmers.

The agitation drew a mixed response in Goa, with banking operations affected while essential services remained undisrupted. Nationalised banks and offices of many insurance companies remained shut in the coastal state.

Over 25,000 civilian employees working with defence establishments across Madhya Pradesh reported to work an hour late on Thursday to support the strike. Markets, schools and colleges remained open across the state.

It had little impact in Gujarat, with most services and commercial establishments functioning as usual across the state. Normal life remained largely unaffected in major cities, including Ahmedabad, Surat, Vadodara and Rajkot. Markets, shops, industrial units and educational institutions operated without disruption, while public transport services and autorickshaws ran without any problem.

Industrial strike evokes partial response in state

PTI, KOLKATA, FEB 12, 2026: A statewide industrial strike called in West Bengal on Thursday by a joint forum of central trade unions evoked partial response as work was affected in some banks and industrial zones.

The joint forum announced a general strike in the rest of the country on Thursday, demanding repeal of the new labour code and over other issues. Members of the trade unions, including CITU, AITUC and UTUC, who have also given the call of 'Save Bengal' in the Assembly poll-bound state, demonstrated outside factories in industrial hubs at Durgapur and Haldia.

Banking operations in several public and private sector banks in West Bengal were affected owing to the strike, trade union leaders said, while the State Bank of India (SBI) reported normal functioning.

Bank Employees Federation of India general secretary Debasish Basu Chaudhury claimed the strike was "successful" in the banking sector across the state. He claimed services in most public and private sector banks were hit, though SBI employees did not directly participate. "SBI employees have not joined the strike but have extended moral support," he said. SBI sources maintained that operations at its branches across the state remained normal without any disruption.

Meanwhile, Kolkata Port authorities said cargo handling and other port activities, including loading and unloading, continued as usual. The jute sector reported partial disruption. Former Indian Jute Mills Association chairman Sanjay Kajaria said several mills were either shut or operating partially due to the strike.

Public transportation in the state was, however, not affected as it has been kept outside the purview of the strike owing to the ongoing state school board examination.