Gear up for festive curbs in Delhi day before G20 restrictions set in

Thursday is expected to be as bad, if not worse, with Janmashtami festivities and the final day of a Chehlum procession

A religious procession around Connaught Place on Wednesday aggravated the traffic mess in and around New Delhi, adding to the stringent curbs in place ahead of the G20 Summit and leaving commuters stuck in stop-start jams, even as another lot of road closures crippled commutes for a second consecutive day.

Traffic jam on Minto Road due to the Chehlum procession on Wednesday. (Sanjeev Verma/HT Photo)

Thursday is expected to be as bad, if not worse, with Janmashtami festivities and the final day of a Chehlum procession expected to compound troubles for motorists, who must also keep curbs imposed due to the Summit in mind.

Most parts of New Delhi and central Delhi have, for the past few days, been subjected to strict checks ahead of the G20 Summit, which will be held at Pragati Maidan over the weekend. Rehearsals to accommodate carcades (as the police calls them -- a portmanteau of car and cavalcade) on stretches leading to and from the venue, as well as restrictions on roads heading to and from New Delhi have made traffic unpredictable for commuters.

Restrictions effected due to a Chehlum procession of 7,000-8,000 people around Connaught Place on Wednesday between 7am and 7pm added to these curbs, and impacted commuters on Outer Circle, Tolstoy Marg, Sansad Marg, Kasturba Gandhi Marg, Barakhambha Road, Rail Bhawan roundabout and India Gate, and Tughlaq Road.

Chehlum, an occasion marked by Shia Muslims, is observed 40 days after Muharram and commemorates the martyrdom of Imam Hussain, prophet Muhammad’s grandson.

Further, carcade rehearsals, which the traffic police announced at 12.30am on Wednesday, caught commuters off-guard between 5.30am and 10.30am. Several roads were cut off and motorists halted for checks in various parts of the city.

The combined impact of all of these curbs and slowdowns on Wednesday slammed the brakes on traffic in New Delhi and its neighbouring regions. The traffic also bled on to Paschim Vihar, some stretches of Najafgarh road, East of Kailash near Iskcon Temple, Lahori Gate junction, Hauz Khas, Outer Ring Road, as well as the stretch from Mangolpuri to Peeragarhi.

“There was a 33-minute traffic jam on Outer Ring Road going towards Paschim Vihar and there was no official to manage the traffic,” said a 3pm post on social media platform X by a user identified as Aman Arora.

Some public buses carrying passengers were terminated near Akshardham, with around 400 passengersforced to de-board midway through their journey around 10am. This was not announced and passengers were not alerted that buses would not finish their trips.

When asked about the buses, special commissioner of police (traffic) Surender Singh Yadav said, “The information about stopping the buses is correct. The issue was resolved within 10-15 minutes. Even during the rehearsal, we have tried to allow the flow of traffic at regular intervals. It’s a matter of pride for Bharat (India) that we are hosting this event (G20 summit) that needs regular planning and rehearsal. We apologise for the inconvenience caused to the public, but at the same time urge them to cooperate.”

Meanwhile, arrangements for the last rites of SPG director Arun Kumar Sinha, who passed away on Thursday, also held commuters up at the Chirag Delhi crossing for at least 20 minutes around 2pm on Wednesday.

“The BRT corridor, from Lala Lajpat Rai Road towards Saket and vice versa, was shut to allow dignitaries to travel to the funeral at Lodhi crematorium,” said a senior traffic police officer.

There may be similar problems today.

According to a traffic advisory issued by the Delhi traffic police, traffic curbs due to the Janmashtami festivities will begin at 2pm on Thursday and stay in force till Friday morning.

Meanwhile, the Chehlum procession will culminate at Karbala near Jor Bagh in Lodhi Colony on Thursday evening, with several VIPs, diplomats and ambassadors of Gulf countries expected to attend.

At least seven major temples across the Capital will hold Janmashtami celebrations, with diversions put in place to accommodate these events across central, south, south-west, west, and east Delhi.

The temples include Laxmi Narain Mandir at Mandir Marg, two Iskcon temples in Amar Colony and Dwarka Sector 13, Janmashtami Park at Punjabi Bagh, Gufawala Mandir at Preet Vihar in east Delhi, Adhya Katyayni Shakti Peeth in Chhatarpur, and Santoshi Mata Mandir in Hari Nagar, said the traffic police advisory.

Anticipating large crowds at Laxmi Narain Mandir, the traffic police said no vehicles will be allowed on Mandir Marg from Talkatora Stadium roundabout towards Mandir Marg upto Peshwa Road, to the Mandir Marg T-junction and vice-versa. Similarly, vehicular movement will be prohibited on Mandir Lane from Shankar Road roundabout to Mandir Marg.

These closures are expected to cause severe congestion on routes between central and west Delhi, said the police, adding that roads around Connaught Place may also bear the brunt of these curbs.

The advisory added that the Chehlum procession, which reached Karbala around 8.30pm on Wednesday, will carry out a burial on Thursday evening, with nearly 25,000 Shia Muslims likely to attend.

A traffic police officer who asked not to be named said, “Although the carcade rehearsal tomorrow will be brief, the diversions and restrictions that will be in place for the Janmashtami festival and the conclusion of Chehlum at Karbala may cause inconvenience to motorists. Personnel will be deployed in adequate strength to manage traffic flow.”