Normal life was disrupted in several parts of Odisha on Tuesday due to the countrywide general strike called by central trade unions to protest against "anti-labour" policies of the UPA government.

Train services and road traffic were affected as strike supporters blocked railway tracks in some places and buses, taxis and auto-rickshaws remained off the roads, police said.

Several trains were halted in Bhubaneswar, Khurda Road, Rourkela, Berhampur and Sambalpur due to demonstrations on the tracks, they said.

The strike also affected functioning of post offices, insurance and other offices as trade union activists held picketing and demonstrations in many areas to enforce the bandh.

In the state capital here, shops and business establishments remained closed and the roads wore a deserted look with very thin traffic.

A spokesman of the Rourkela Steel Plant said functioning of the plant was normal with about 97 percent attendance.

The bandh, however, remained peaceful.