Delhi Police cause Gurujam 2.0
SCREECHING HALT 9-hour-long snarl after expressway barricaded to stop large groups from entering national capital
GURUGRAM: Thousands of daily commuters, office goers and airline passengers were stuck for up to nine hours on Thursday while travelling from Gurugram to Delhi on the National Highway 48 as Delhi Police set up barricades to stop protesters from reaching planned demonstrations against the new citizenship law in the Capital.
The checkpoints, put up at Sirhaul toll plaza on the four-lane carriageway that leads to Delhi, ensued the worst traffic jam in three years, second only to the infamous “Gurujam” of July 2016, when commuters were stuck on the road for 20 hours and authorities were forced to effect major changes in infrastructure and planning.
Between 8am and 1pm, the traffic tailback extended for around 6km– from the Sirhaul toll plaza to Signature Tower. In 2016, heavy showers and a poor drainage system had choked NH48, which is used by an estimated 300,000 people daily.
Gurugram Police blamed their Delhi counterparts, saying they had been kept in the dark until 7.30am on Thursday, about an hour after the barricades were put up, and added that they could have diverted traffic if warned in advance. In response, Delhi Police said they were trying to stop miscreants from fomenting trouble at demonstrations in the national capital.
From early morning till about 4pm, vehicles were allowed to pass through, one at a time, on one lane of the main carriageway, while the service lane remained shut. From 8am onwards, once peak-hour traffic began, the traffic quickly piled up. The spillover of the congestion was felt on other approach roads from Gurugam to
Delhi, especially MG Road, where commuters were stuck for over an hour in some stretches.
“My son had to go to Kolkata regarding some official work. We started from our house at 9am to catch a 12.30pm flight. We tried taking NH8 and even MG Road but got stuck in traffic and could not reach the airport,” said Raman Krishnamoorthy, an IT professional from Manesar.
Rajeev Ranjan, a resident of Sector 28 in Gurugram, missed his flight to Chandigarh after being stuck at the toll plaza for nearly four hours. He had to book an evening train later.
A number of flight crews and attendants were also stuck in the jam, which led to the cancellation of 19 flights and cancellation of around 50 more.
The barricades were finally removed at 3.45pm, when traffic finally began thinning and the situation gradually returned to normal, by around 5.30pm.
Gurugram traffic police said they were informed too late.
SOME SCHOOLS SHUT EARLY, ISSUE ADVISORY
Many schools in the city decided to send students home early after concerned parents started reaching the school amid uncertainty about the prevailing traffic situation. While schools, such as Kunskapsskolan and Lotus Valley, shut early, others said they were monitoring the traffic situation constantly and were apprising parents about the same.
Nehaa Singh Kamboj, whose daughter studies at Lotus Valley International School, said that the school called for a half-day due to the traffic. “We were called at 11 in the morning and informed that the school would be a halfday,” said Kamboj.
Kunal Bhadoo, director of Kunskapsskolan Schools, said that the school had dispersed early since the traffic situation had caused panic among parents. “The traffic jam had caused panic among the parents. Both branches of Kunskapsskolan were shut early and we declared a halfday. Many parents were calling and we wanted to take precautions against any build-up. We also gave an advisory to parents and asked them to pick up their children, if they were concerned,” said Bhadoo.
Manav Rachna International, Sector 46, also dispersed early. “We had two routes running, so we sent everyone on the first route around 12:50. We also informed parents who pick up their children to come a little earlier,” said Surabhi Joshi, vice-principal, Manav Rachna International, Sector 46.
The management of Shiv Nadar School sent a message to parents, informing that certain bus routes bound for Delhi would not ply and asked them to make arrangements to pick up their wards.
Some schools stuck to their usual timings, but sent an advisory to parents. “We sent a message to the parents, informing them that buses might get delayed due to the traffic. We told them that they could pick up their children from school, if they were worried.
COPS TIGHTEN BORDER VIGIL
The Delhi Police carried out intense checking at Sirhaul toll plaza, Kapashera and Aya Nagar on MG Road, the three main borders between Delhi and Haryana, to ensure that vehicles ferrying those protesting the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA) from Haryana and Rajasthan did not enter the national capital on Thursday.
Police officials at the border said that they had with them a list of vehicles, with registration numbers of Haryana and Punjab, that could be used for transporting the protesters.