India, Jan. 7 -- Traffic movement on the Agartala-Sabroom National Highway was paralysed for nearly eight hours on Tuesday after civil society organisations staged a road blockade in Tripura's Sepahijala district, protesting against the inclusion of Sixth Schedule protected areas within the limits of a newly notified Nagar Panchayat.

The blockade was enforced from Tuesday morning at Pushkarbari, a key point on the national highway linking the state capital with southern Tripura. As a result, vehicular movement came to a complete halt, leaving hundreds of public transport vehicles, goods carriers and private cars stranded on both sides of the road. Daily commuters, office-goers and passengers travelling long distances faced severe inconve...