In a major respite to crises-ridden Andhra Pradesh, power sector employees who have been on strike for the past five days plunging Seemandhra region into darkness, on Thursday announced “temporary suspension” of their agitation in the wake of the threat posed by cyclone “Phailin” which is expected to hit north coastal Andhra on the night of Oct. 12.

The announcement followed a third round of talks between Chief Minister N.Kiran Kumar Reddy and leaders of the Seemandhra Electricity Employees Joint Action Committee at the State Secretariat on Thursday. Emerging from the hour-long meeting, the JAC convenor Sai Baba told waiting mediapersons that they were only suspending the agitation temporarily on humanitarian grounds following the appeal by the chief minister to resume their duties in view of the impending threat from the cyclone.

A total of 30,000 electricity employees besides another 20,000 contract workers from coastal Andhra and Rayalaseema joined the anti-bifurcation agitation that has been sweeping Seemandhra since the Congress Working Committee (CWC) decision on July 30 to carve out a separate Telangana State.