Farmers protest in Noida and Jewar, traffic affected briefly on expressway

The famers’ movement on the expressway around 1pm affected traffic and led to snarls. However, the police diverted protesters to a vacant green belt area

Traffic on the Noida-Greater Noida expressway was affected briefly on Monday afternoon after farmers affiliated to the Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU-Tikait) reached Mahamaya flyover via the expressway and staged a sit-in protest there.

Traffic congestion was witnessed at the Delhi-Noida DND border due to security concerns arising from the protest as Bharatiya Kisan Union (Tikait) farmers took out 'Tractor march’ for MSP on Monday. (Sunil Ghosh/HT Photo)

The Noida police made arrangements under the Mahamaya flyover in the vacant green belt space for farmers and they parked their tractors there before staging a peaceful protest, post which normal traffic flow was restored. A simultaneously protest was also held in Jewar by another group of farmers.

Rajneesh Verma, assistant commissioner of police, Noida, said, “There were three to four groups of farmers affiliated to the BKU who were protesting in the city on Monday. One group was protesting in Jewar, another in central Noida, and a third near Mahamaya flyover.”

“Noida farmers started their protest from Shafipur village and reached Mahamaya flyover using the expressway,” said Verma.

The famers’ movement on the expressway around 1pm affected traffic and led to snarls. However, the Noida police placed barricades near Mahamaya flyover and diverted protested to a vacant green belt area under the flyover.

There were around 50 farmers on around 30 tractors, who peacefully protested for around three hours. The protest ended around 4pm, said police.

BKU-Tikait’s district president Ashok Bhati said, “We decided to protest at Mahamaya flyover as reaching Jewar from Noida was not viable for us. We used the left lane of the expressway to reach Mahamaya without causing any problems to motorists.”

“Traffic was affected for a while, but as they (farmers) were advised to protest under Mahamaya flyover, the inconvenience was minimal,” said Manish Kumar Mishra,deputy commissioner of police, Noida.

Nikhil Jha, who was going to his office near Siri Fort auditorium in Delhi from his home in Mayur Vihar Phase 3, said, “The traffic was smooth on the Delhi Noida Direct (DND) Flyway around 8.30am. However, owing to heavy barricading by the police, vehicles were cruising at a slow speed.”

Delhi and Noida police increased barricading at the three border points of Kalindi Kunj, DND Flyway, and Chilla, which slowed down traffic movement.

Meanwhile, another group of famers’ organised a tractor march from Rabupura to Jewar toll plaza near the Yamuna Expressway loop. They protested from noon to 3.30pm but avoided the Yamuna Expressway and because of that, traffic movement was comparatively smooth on the Yamuna Expressway and in Greater Noida, said police.