Kochi residents appealed to stand against Thursday's hartal

KOCHI: The Better Kochi Response Group (BKRG) has asked residents in Kochi to stand against the hartal on Thursday. BKRG is also part of Joint Action Council Against Hartal (JACAH), comprising 45 organisations.

BKRG, TiE, CII, chambers, industrial and commercial organisations, schools, KTM, CREDAI, BAI, EDDRAC and export houses held a meeting in Kochi on December 22 and decided not to cooperate with hartal calls.

It was unanimously decided not to cooperate with Thursday's hartal call and open all establishments, shops, and take out all vehicles. We request all people to cooperate in this bold move and do your work as usual. Kindly do not connect this with any political outlook. A time has come when we have to rise for a good cause, noted a press statement from BKRG. BKRG President S Gopakumar said it is expected people will raise their voices against the hartal.

No one benefits from the hartal. People are forced to stay back in their houses. The financial losses because of it are severe. We cannot let anyone forcefully shut us down anymore. Only a mass movement can uproot the hartal from the state, he said.