In West Bengal, normal life has been affected due to 24 hour nation-wide general strike called by major trade unions today. Most of the shops and establishments, educational institutions are closed. Public transport is also off the road. Attendance in offices is thin. Our Kolkata correspondent reports that train services in Howra and Sealdah division of eastern and south eastern railway and metro railway are normal. Normal functioning at Tea Garden in North Bengal is on. Work at IT sector is also normal. However, ferry services in Kolkata have come to a halt. No major untoward incident has so far been reported.