Congestion on DND Flyway as farmers protest at Chilla border

Noida: There was heavy traffic on the DND Flyway, which connects Delhi to Noida, on Wednesday as many farmers protesting the Centre’s farm laws blocked the road

Noida: There was heavy traffic on the DND Flyway, which connects Delhi to Noida, on Wednesday as many farmers protesting the Centre’s farm laws blocked the road between the two cities at the Chilla border.

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The protesters had arrived on Tuesday afternoon and blocked both routes. On Wednesday, authorities and farmers combined to allow traffic from Delhi through, reducing some of the pressure on the DND Flyway and Kalindi Kunj road between the two cities.

The Delhi Police on Tuesday had barricaded the Chilla border on Tuesday to keep the farmers from crossing the border.

“Normally, I use the Chilla border to go to Delhi but today I had to use the DND where traffic was slow. Due to the diversion at the Chilla border, many vehicles were taking U-turns that created confusion,” said Sadhna Gupta, a Noida resident.

Noida Traffic department kept updating commuters about the situation on social media.

“The traffic did not come to a standstill. It was moving steadily through Kalindi Kunj and the DND. We kept sharing updates with the through Twitter,” said Ganesh Saha, deputy commissioner of police, traffic.

Around 3.30 pm, Delhi Police opened up a section of Chilla border allowing traffic to move from Delhi to Noida. The protesters gathered at the other section without crossing the border.

Meanwhile, Noida Police detained a group of nearly 45 farmers in the afternoon who were camped at the Mahamaya flyover.

“They wanted to go to DND but were stopped at Mahamaya. Traffic was not affected as they kept on the side of the road. But when they refused to leave, the group was taken in police detention and will be challaned,” said DCP (zone 1) Rajesh S.

Another smaller group found moving towards the DND Flyway border was asked by Noida Police to move to the Dalit Prerna Sthal, which they agreed.

Nearly 160 Noida Police personnel, including one company of the PAC, several SHOs, ACPs etc were deployed to monitor the situation at the Chilla border, DND flyway, Mahamaya flyover and Dalit Prerna Sthal.

A senior police officer said that as soon as Delhi Police allowed farmers in, they would let them move ahead. He also said that the groups in Noida will probably disperse on December 3 when farmers’ representatives in Delhi and the central government arrive at an agreement.