Year on, traffic partially restored at Shambhu border

In a major relief to commuters and local businessmen, the traffic was restored at the Haryana-Punjab interstate border, Shambhu, on Thursday.

After the Punjab Police got the protest site cleared last evening, the Haryana Police started removing barricades.

The Shambhu toll plaza saw cemented barricades, barbed wires, and heavy police deployment to prevent farmers from marching towards Delhi, and it had been sealed since February 10 last year.

The teams of the National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) and PWD (B&R) cleared the blockade with the help of heavy-duty machines. A team of bridge-safety consultant and officials from the district administration inspected the site to ensure that the bridge was not affected during the dismantling of concrete slabs.

After the traffic was restored, the commuters expressed happiness and said national highways should not be closed at any cost as it caused inconvenience.

Due to the blockade, the commuters travelling on the Delhi-Amritsar highway were forced to take alternative routes, and transporters had to burn extra fuel to deliver goods.

Vishal Batra, president of the Wholesale Cloth Market Association, said, “The opening of Shambhu border has come as a respite for people of Ambala as well as traders and businessmen. The action taken by the Punjab Police last night should have been taken in February last year itself. The market has suffered a huge loss over the past one year and revival will take time. We are hopeful that the market will witness some good buying during the upcoming wedding season.”

Deputy Commissioner Ajay Singh Tomer, SP Surinder Singh Bhoria, and several other district officials also reached the border to inspect the work. Bhoria said, “A joint meeting was held with the Patiala administration regarding the situation, and after the meeting, traffic was restored for light vehicles. After getting a clearance from the bridge-safety consultant, the traffic for heavy vehicles will also be restored. The farmers have given a call for a protest on Friday. A close watch is being kept on the situation.”

Notices issued to farmers

The Ambala police have served notices to farmer leaders, asking them to be present before the Special Investigation Team (SIT) in connection with the cases registered against them during the protest last year. Farmers have given a call to burn the effigies of the Punjab Government in Haryana on Friday.