maratha bandh
Protestors have blocked the Sion Panvel highway. (In File: Indian members of the Maratha community in the state of Maharashtra take part in a rally in Mumbai on August 9, 2017.PUNIT PARANJPE/AFP/Getty Images

Even though Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has assured that his government is working on providing "legally sustainable" reservation for the Maratha community in government jobs and educational institutions, the Maratha Kranti Morcha has called for a state wide-bandh on Thursday, August 9.

Here are the LIVE updates:

  • Agitators in Mumbai, cover their eyes and mouth with black ribbons during protest.
maratha bandh
ANI
  • Agitators are also staging  a protest outside Mumbai Collector's office in Bandra.
  • Reports have said that agitators from Maratha outfits are carrying out a sit-in protest outside the residence of Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief Sharad Pawar in Baramati.
  • Public buses in Pune are staying off the roads as a precautionary measure.
  • The Western Railway has tweeted that the bandh has not affected the suburban railways.
  • In the Satara district, the bandh has taken a hit on the public transport services. In fact, petrol pumps and vegetable markets have also been shut down.
  • According to officials, Maratha agitators have blocked roads in some parts of Maharashtra and have disrupted vehicular movement. A few agitators have also disrupted traffic in a few areas like Latur, Jalna, Solapur and Buldhana districts.
  • Internet services have been suspended in 7 tehsils of Pune district- Shirur, Khed, Baramati, Junnar, Maval, Daund and Bhor, as a precautionary measure.
  • Meanwhile security has been tightened all across the state.
  • A Maratha group has said that it will maintain peace throughout the bandh.
    "It will be a peaceful protest from 8 am to 6 pm. I appeal to my fellow Maratha youths to desist from committing suicides. It is not going to help the community and its cause," Amol Jadhavrao, a leader of Sakal​ Maratha Samaj said.
  • Pune District Collector Naval Kishore Ram has directed schools and colleges to remain shut on Thursday.
    "Even if there is no untoward incident during the protest, roads might be blocked and we don't want students to be inconvenienced and parents to be anxious unnecessarily," News 18 quoted the collector as saying.
  • Keeping in mind the chaos which erupted in the state on July 25 over the Maratha quota agitation, the police are well prepared to prevent any violence that may take place during the bandh.
  • The members of the regional outfit who are participating in the agitation have warned that they will make sure all communications are suspended during the bandh.