Traders in Dehradun and other areas of the State voluntarily kept their shops and establishments closed to express solidarity with the families of the martyrs of the Pulwama terror attack on Saturday. Hindu organisations, including Bajrang Dal, had given a call for Bandh on the day to condemn the ghastly attack on the CRPF convoy on Thursday in Pulwama in which 43 soldiers had lost their lives.

The supporters of the Bandh started roaming around the markets since the morning and requested the shopkeepers to close their shops. However, at most of the places, the shopkeepers voluntarily downed the shutters.

Essential services like hospitals and schools were kept out of the purview of the shutdown.  Some members of Bajrang Dal and other Hindu organisations burned an effigy of Pakistan at Dhammawala market to vent anger against the neighbouring country for aiding and abetting the terrorists. On that sad occasion, the Bajrang Dal leaders said that the time has come when the Government instead of engaging in mere verbosity should retaliate hard. 

Meanwhile, different organisations and employee associations continue to come forward to offer financial help to the families of the martyred soldiers.

On Friday, the Chief Minister Trivendra Singh Rawat had said that all the Ministers and the MLAs would donate one month’s salary for  the cause.

On Saturday, the top officers of Uttarakhand police held a meeting at police headquarters during which the attack on CRPF personnel was condemned. The meeting, chaired by the director general (DG) police Anil K Raturi, decided to raise an amount for the martyr families by mutual contribution. It was decided that 50 percent of this amount would be sent to the CRPF headquarters while the remaining amount would be handed over to the family members of two martyrs from Uttarakhand.

Similarly, the staff of the Government Doon Medical College (GDMC) Hospital decided to contribute salary of one day for the families of the martyrs.