Weddings, events cause traffic to crawl in South Delhi

The ongoing Radha Soami Satsang in South Delhi’s Chhatarpur area and the grand weddings in the farmhouses of South Delhi chocked the South district on Thursday and Friday. No adequate arrangements were made by the Delhi Traffic Police as a result commuters had to stand still in long tailbacks on both days.

On Thursday and Friday, commuters going to South Delhi, or passing through the arterial roads in South district, had a horrifying time after they were stuck in an unexpected traffic jam on the major roads including Ring Road connecting South district with other areas. The usual timings for the Radha Soami Satsang at the venue — in the Bhati Complex on Bhati Mines Road under the Fathepur Beri police station jurisdiction, is from 6 am to 3 pm. A huge public gathering of around three to four lakh from all parts of Delhi, NCR and neighbouring states visit the venue. “When visitors start approaching the venue in the early hours, there is no major congestion on the roads but while they return in the afternoon, the sudden increase in the volume creates traffic snarls,” a senior traffic police official said.

The major roads that remain worst affected are Bhati Mines Road, 100 Foota Road, Mehrauli-Gurgaon Road (specifically near CDR Chowk and Andheria More), Mehruali-Mahipalpur Road, Anuvrat Marg, Mehruali-Badarpur Road (From Lado Sarai to Khanpur), Aurbindo Marg (From IIT Flyover to Lado Sarai). Further, the roads approaching towards these roads are also affected and traffic on these two days was moving at snail’s pace.

Later in the evening, apart from the rush of the peak hours, people going to attend weddings in South Delhi — a hotspot for weddings — catalysed the traffic jam.

Commuters also complained that the traffic police did not make proper arrangements for smooth movement of traffic.

Meanwhile on November 22, in view of the forthcoming marriage season, the Delhi Police have allowed the entry of heavy/medium goods vehicles to enter Delhi borders between 12 midnight and 6 am to ensure proper traffic management and smooth flow of traffic on Delhi roads.

Earlier, goods vehicles could enter the Delhi borders between 11 pm and 6 am. This new decision is taken to ensure hassle-free traffic during the marriage season.

“Since most of the ceremonial halls are located near Delhi borders like Kapashera, Alipur, and other areas, there will be heavy traffic during the marriage season. The entry of trucks before 12 pm makes the places prone to accidents. Hence, we decided to limit the traffic from 12 midnight to 6 in the morning till further orders,” said Joint CP, Traffic A K Ojha.