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Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsIndia Unrest Puts 21 Million in Dark as Outages Threaten Google
Protests against a plan to split a southern Indian state entered a fourth day, leaving about 21 million people without electricity as outages threatened to affect technology companies like Google Inc. (GOOG) and Microsoft (MSFT) Corp.
Striking workers shuttered power plants and impeded distribution, extending blackouts that started Oct. 6 in six districts of Andhra Pradesh. The protesters oppose Prime Minister Manmohan Singhs move last week to divide the state before national elections due by May.
Its as if the world has come to a standstill, Buchi Babu Tanuku, who works with a local daily newspaper in the state, said by phone from West Godavari district. Everyones staying indoors as theres nothing much to do.
The standoff risks disrupting the power supply to an area about the size of Spain that holds 20 percent of the countrys 1.2 billion people. The division will help Singhs Congress party win some seats in the newly created state of Telangana as it pushes to extend its nine-year rule, according to N. Bhaskara Rao, chairman of the New Delhi-based Centre for Media Studies.
The situation is becoming worse as there is no leader there having some credibility to tackle the problem, Rao said. This mess will not subside before the election. Protests will continue in one way or other.
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-10-08/southern-india-protests-leave-21-million-people-without-power.html
gopiscrap
(23,765 posts)johnd83
(593 posts)I visited a little over ten years ago and it was crazy then. It seemed to be completely out of control from a Western perspective and it sounds like it has gotten worse.
kestrel91316
(51,666 posts)at the end of this month. I am terrified for them.