India rocked by strike over fuel prices

NEW DELHI — A strike called by opposition parties over fuel price rises disrupted life across India on Monday, shutting schools and businesses and causing transport mayhem in major cities.Flights were grounded in commercial airline hubs such as Mumbai and Kolkata, train services were hit by protesters blocking the tracks, and buses and taxis stayed off the roads.Police were out in force to prevent any unrest during the 12-hour strike called by the main opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and leftist parties in a show of strength against the Congress-led government's reform programme.The response to the strike call was mixed across the country, with the greatest impact felt in states with non-Congress administrations, like West Bengal, Maharashtra, Karnataka and Bihar.In New Delhi, the government said it would not be bullied into reneging on reform promises, and Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee insisted there was "no question" of rolling back on the fuel price hikes.The government scrapped petrol subsidies last month and announced an across-the-board rise in the price of other fuels as a key part of its strategy to rein in a yawning fiscal deficit. The inflationary knock-on effect of the increases is an issue that India's fractured opposition can unite over, given simmering popular concern over steep rises in the cost of living.The strike was widely observed in India's financial capital, Mumbai, where police rounded up 1,000 "trouble-makers" on Sunday in a pre-emptive move to prevent any large-scale unrest.Flights to and from Mumbai airport were severely disrupted, with domestic airlines cancelling 45 departures and 39 arrivals.The city's taxis were mostly off the streets, while most schools, colleges and businesses closed down, with some shopkeepers voicing concerns that the right-wing Shiv Sena party would use violence to enforce the strike call.There were clashes in several cities, with police charging with batons and using water cannon to disperse crowds. The Mumbai police's rapid reaction force w

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