Hyderabad: Normal life was disrupted in Rayalaseema and coastal Andhra regions on Wednesday as a shutdown began in the two regions against the decision of the Congress and the UPA to create Telangana state out of Andhra Pradesh. Road transport came to a standstill while shops, business establishments and educational institutions remained closed as protests began in coastal Andhra and Rayalaseema regions.

The shutdown called by Samaikya Andhra or United Andhra Joint Action Committee has evoked near total response in all major towns. Opposing the division of the state, students and activists of various groups took to the streets. Effigies of Congress president Sonia Gandhi were burnt during the protests. The protesters raised slogans of 'Jai Samaikya Andhra' and squatted on the roads.

Educational institutions, commercial establishments remained closed and the services of state-run Andhra Pradesh Road Transport Corporation (APSRTC) were suspended in Rayalaseema and coastal Andhra districts like Kadapa, Chittoor, Visakhapatnam and Krishn

The protesters alleged that the Congress, which leads the UPA, took a "unilateral" decision to divide the state, and demanded the resignation of all public representatives to mount pressure on the party to withdraw the decision. Buses of APSRTC could not come out of the depots as protestors staged sit-ins at all nine districts of coastal Andhra and four of Rayalaseema.

The protesters blocked traffic on national and state highways at some places. Hundreds of vehicles were stranded due to protests on the Vijayawada-Hyderabad and the Chennai-Bhubaneswar highways.

However, no major incident of violence was reported from the two regions till the morning hours, though the announcement by Congress met with disappointment across the two regions. In addition to the state police, central paramilitary forces have been deployed in large numbers in the Rayalaseema and coastal Andhra districts to ensure law and order is maintained, also in view of the panchayat polls.