Koraput: The BJD's dawn-to-dusk strike to protest against a central government decision threw life out of gear at the block headquarters of Chandahandi in Nabarangpur district on Saturday.

The BJD was protesting against the Centre's decision not to grant environmental clearance for a multipurpose irrigation project over the Tel river.

The state government had conducted two surveys for the proposed project in 2006 and 2014, an activist said.

Though a detailed project report with a Rs 1,146-crore estimate had been sent to the ministry of environment and forests in 2014 for environmental clearance, it was deliberately denied, he said.

"It is an important project for the area to strengthen irrigation facilities. Farmers of at least 14 panchayats will benefit from the project, but the Centre has declined the environmental clearance," said BJD leader Pramod Panda.

"We will intensify our agitation till our demand is fulfilled as thousands of farmers depend on the success of the project," he said.

An official said the project aimed to irrigate nearly 10,000 hectares of agricultural land and would produce 20MW of power a day, the report said.

Shops, markets, educational institutions, government and private offices remained shut during the day. Passengers had a harrowing time as buses remained off the road and hundreds of vehicles were stranded.

The BJD activists took out a rally and were seen picketing at various points. They also blocked all roads connecting to the block headquarters.

However, police said the strike was peaceful and no untoward incident was reported.

"We made security arrangements and no violence was reported," said district additional superintendent of police Bimal Kanta Brahma.