Commuters irked as protesters block roads

Commuters today had a harrowing experience while driving on city roads as most crucial crossing points were blocked by Dalit organisations protesting against yesterday’s vandalisation of Dr BR Ambedkar’s statue. Traffic movement was further curtailed after leaders of major political parties arrived in Amritsar for selecting a Mayor prompting the police to divert traffic on certain major city roads.

Inderpreet Singh of the Anand Avenue said a portion of the old Jail road was blocked to felicitate the movement of Congress leaders, who had gathered at a hotel, before heading towards the municipal corporation (MC) office to elect the Mayor. He said, “To my surprise, the passage heading towards the Bhandari railway overbridge was completely choked. The police standing at the barricaded approach road conveyed that protesters had blocked the Bhandari bridge due to which traffic movement was completely stopped.”

“The same scene was witnessed at the Hukum Singh road railway overbridge where vehicles were lined up well before the traffic lights at the mouth of the Batala road. The situation same at Joda Phatak. At that point I dropped the idea of going to my shop in the walled city area which is situated across the railway line.”

Rachit Arora, a resident of Bharat Nagar on the Batala road, said he was to deliver lunch to his relative at a private hospital on the GT road. However, when he reached Sant Singh Sukha Singh Chowk, he found the road ahead blocked. “I turned to the Majitha road to take further diversion from the Lawrence road. Commuters coming from the walled city to the Bhandari railway overbridge and the elevated road were stuck in traffic jam. Serpentine queues of vehicles were seen on elevated road,” he said.

Vehicles were stuck in a traffic jam on the adjoining Cooper Road, Crystal Chowk, Ram Bagh, outside Hall Gate, Hathi Gate and on various other roads in the city, he said.