Jat quota stir: One entry lane to Delhi stalls traffic
Fearing disruption during the Jat quota stir, the Delhi police had also decided to shut all entry lanes to Delhi on the DND and Kalindi Kunj routes in order to stop the Jats from entering central Delhi
Fearing disruption during the Jat agitation, Delhi Police blocked all but one entry lane to Delhi on Delhi-Noida-Direct (DND) flyway and Kalindi Kunj route causing massive traffic congestion for more than eight hours.
Demanding reservation, thousands of Jats were supposed to protest in New Delhi from Monday. Fearing disruption, Delhi Police had decided to shut all National Capital Region (NCR) metro stations including that of Gurgaon, Noida and Faridabad from Monday. However, the impending Jat agitation was called off later in the evening after Haryana chief minister Manohar lal Khattar held talks with the agitating leaders.
As a precautionary measure, Delhi police had also decided to shut all entry lanes to Delhi on the DND and Kalindi Kunj routes in order to stop protesting Jats from entering central Delhi. At 2 pm, Delhi police and Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) personnel installed barricades at all but one lane before the Noida gate and Kalindi Kunj flyover.
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The blockade resulted in massive traffic disruption and it continued till late evening.
“The decision was taken by Delhi police and Noida Police personnel. The barricades have not been removed yet and we will open the routes for commuters once we receive clear direction,” a representative from Noida Traffic Control room said.
The jam hassled several thousand commuters who extensively use the DND to shuttle between Delhi and Noida. Despite it being a Sunday when most offices stay closed, the volume of traffic was massive.
“It took us more than three hours to travel from Greater Noida to Delhi since there was only one entry lane to Delhi. Such protests are a nuisance and it is only the public that suffers. We wasted three hours on a Sunday,” Kalpana Gupta, a resident of Saket, said.