The tarmac was a frenzy of activity, while life all around seemed to have stood still. Traffic jam for kilometres, unending queues of visitors, chaos at the entrance and the struggle to exit marked the end of the five-day Aero India.
With the final shows falling on a Saturday, lakhs of people thronged the roads to Air Force Station Yelahanka. “Conservatively, we estimate that over 3 lakh people came on the last day,” said R. Hitendra, Additional Commissioner of Police (Traffic).
Traffic diversions could not contain the chaos. For instance, a majority of visitors were diverted to narrow service roads; while only select gates and airport services could go on the elevated express ways.
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The result was a line of vehicles stuck for hours on end. Soundarya Krishna and her family had left at 8.30 a.m. in the hope of seeing the morning show. But as vehicle movement slowed down, and queues at entrances grew longer, she could make it only post-noon.
Frustration was evident on the ground and on social media, with complaints of bad management, traffic chaos and even calls to end Aero India here.
With congestion unrelenting, some of the diversions were removed at the last minute, adding to the chaos. Those travelling to the Air Display Viewing Area — the most popular spot and with the cheapest tickets — were the worst hit, with reports of people being stuck for up to three hours.
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Adding to this was the confusion over the entry gate (there are 12 gates spread across the air base), long walk from the parking lot to the security check, long queues, sweltering heat and lack of facilities for the disabled or elderly.
It wasn’t just Yelahanka air base that saw a sea of people. Neighbouring villages of Hunsemaranahalli and even near Bettahalasuru saw thousands standing on rooftops, mud mounds and boulders. “This time, it is very chaotic. Till the last edition, the police would drive away those standing close to the Air Force base. But, this time, there are at least 2,000 people standing on the tank bund next to the base,” said Ashok, who was vending sugar-cane juice at Hunsemaranahalli.
With taxi aggregators nearly out of service, airport buses and BMTC special buses saved the day for those exiting the gates. On Ballari Road, buses were seen running full, with a bus being spotted every couple of minutes.