Farmers Movement Archive

Commuters negotiate a maze due to lack of signboards, police help

ROHTAK: Arpit Tyagi of Panipat was scheduled to take a flight for Dhaka from Delhi international airport on December 1 but he had to cancel it due to lack of clarity on the route to enter the national capital in view of the blockade of Singhu and Tikri borders. “I contacted some of my friends to ascertain the route map due to the blockade by farmers’ unions but none of my acquaintances had any idea. They said there are blockades even at routes on link roads on the way to Delhi,” said Arpit, who works in Dhaka. Finally, he got another ticket for December 8 but his journey, which would ordinarily have lasted three to four hours, was stretched to a day. He also said cops were deployed on highways to divert traffic from blocked sites but they would not tell how to enter Delhi. Gurkirpal from Punjab, who was on his way to Delhi via the Jind-Rohtak highway, found himself in similar circumstances. He said he was not clear if he would be able to reach Delhi since both main routes via Sonipat and Bahadurgarh-Tikri border were closed. “The only help for me was the GPS navigator,” he said. Ram Singh from Punjab, who went to Delhi recently, said there are no route maps or signboards on the way from Haryana. “I reached Bahadurgarh to enter Delhi but got stuck on the bypass as it was blocked from both sides. Police deployed on Jakhoda bypass were of no help to commuters like me. It took me a long time figuring out the Najafgarh route to enter Delhi as tractor-trolleys were parked on both sides of the highway,” he said. A resident of Sonipat attributed this to lack of coordination between Haryana and Delhi police. He said they have not issued any joint advisory for commuters travelling through Haryana. “An unknown person travelling by his own vehicle starts getting confused from Murthal Toll Plaza as there are diversions on KMP expressway. There is some relief to those who travel in the day but those who are travelling at night by personal vehicles find it very challenging,” he said. While police personnel have put up barricades, they have not set up signboards. A common sight at the farmers’ agitation site is that of men, women and children walking on foot with luggage on their heads. IGP, Rohtak range, Sandeep Khirwar said Haryana police have issued a traffic advisory on Twitter as well as mass media.

The Times of India

2020-12-12

Chandigarh