A demonstration by hundreds of Yamuna Bachao Andolan activists forced the closure of an arterial carriageway resulting in massive congestion for commuters throughout Friday.
The activists wanted to march down from the Faridabad-Delhi border to Jantar Mantar here to hold a protest but had not sought prior permission from the Delhi Police. This, the police said, left them with no alternative than restricting them a kilometre beyond the Faridabad-Delhi border, affecting traffic headed both to the Capital from Faridabad and vice versa.
“Vehicular movement was suspended on one carriageway on Mathura Road from the Apollo Hospital till Ashram which led to a spill-over effect across the city,” said a traffic police officer.
The traffic police admitted that arterial stretches such as ITO, Mandi House, India Gate, National Highway-24 and certain patches of Ring Road also remained jammed. Commuters such as Advaita Sharma, 29, took double the time to commute to their office and back. “Moolchand was completely chock-a-block throughout the day; I had to wait upwards of an hour to reach my office in Connaught Place,” she said.
On their part, the traffic police said adequate deployment was in place at most intersections but admitted that most personnel had to be posted on Mathura Road.
