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Bharat Bandh: Traffic gridlock keeps Ludhiana cops on toes
Traffic snarls and gridlocks were the order of the day as hundreds of commuters remained in Ludhiana on Monday amid the Bharat Bandh called by farmers’ unions
Traffic snarls and gridlocks were the order of the day as hundreds of commuters remained stuck throughout the day on Monday.
Even after the Bharat Bandh was lifted around 4pm, it took at least two hours for traffic to get back on track. Though most residents stayed home, many were seen stuck on roads due to blockades and had to take multiple detours. Videos of residents struggling to move past the blockades were also widely circulated on social media.
The cops were forced to think on their feet as farmers also blocked roads ,which were not on the list of proposed spots. Inner roads also witnessed heavy traffic and chaos was witnessed near Samrala Chowk, Kochar Market Road, near Octroi post, Jalandhar Bypass Chowk, Jagraon Bridge, Dholewal and Sherpur.
Traffic was diverted to Ladhowal Bypass from Ladhowal Chowk. As the Bharat Nagar Chowk was blocked, cops shifted traffic to the Ring Road and Jawahar Nagar Chowk. Similarly, traffic on Ferozepur Road was shifted to the Southern Bypass and to the inner roads at Sarabha Nagar and Bhai Randhir Singh Nagar.
Sachin Gulati, a resident of Khanna, who was travelling to DMC Hospital, said he was aware of the Bharat Bandh, but had to visit the hospital due to an emergency. “As the protest was scheduled to start at 9am, I left early so that I could reach the hospital on time. Butwhen I reached Ludhiana, I found that the Jagraon Bridge was blocked. So, I took the Bus Stand route from Dholewal Chowk, but as Bharat Nagar Chowk was also blocked, the traffic was diverted via Kochar Market Road,” he said.
A Dugri area resident, Dilpreet Singh, who was stuck at the Dugri Canal Bridge, said. “The general public is suffering as farmers have parked tractor-trolleys on the roads. Even the police is not taking action against the protesters as the state government has extended support to the farmers for gaining political mileage.”
“Protests should be staged in a way that the public is not harassed, otherwise the farmers will lose the support of residents,” said Parminder Singh, a resident of Salem Tabri area.
Joint commissioner of police (JCP, city and traffic) Deepak Pareek said that all necessary arrangements were made and they had chalked out a special diversion plan.
