Nabanna ‘Abhijan’ disrupts transportation in city

Kolkata: The common people faced huge inconvenience on Tuesday as the Nabanna ‘Abhijan’ caused significant disruptions to the transportation system between Howrah and Kolkata.

Restrictions imposed by the police to block the protestors resulted in a standstill for transport services between Howrah and Kolkata. Regular commuters to patients travelling to Kolkata from various districts of South Bengal and other distant areas faced challenges in reaching their destinations. Those heading from Kolkata to Howrah were also affected.

Shanti Barik, a resident of Amta, came to the SSKM in the early morning for treatment in the Orthopaedic department. She reported that she and her companion faced challenges when they tried to return home from hospital. “No buses were going towards my home as the roads were closed. After waiting for more than two hours, we availed Metro services to reach Howrah.” Titu Saha, general secretary of the City Suburban Bus Service, said: “Dharmatala-bound buses operated normally until 4 pm, while Howrah-bound buses were interrupted from the morning. Heavy rain also contributed to lower labour attendance.”

Rahul Chatterjee, general secretary of the All Bengal Bus Minibus Samannay Samiti, explained that before restrictions were implemented, buses with routes, including Howrah, completed one round trip. However, bus services were subsequently halted as roads were transformed into virtual fortresses.

The closure of Howrah Bridge and Vidyasagar Setu severely impacted the connectivity between Howrah and Kolkata, leading to the closure of nearly 80 per cent of bus routes. While bus movements were normal on VIP Road, Salt Lake, New Town and EM Bypass, the roads appeared deserted throughout the day as many people avoided going out due to the disturbances. Due to the unavailability of buses or other means of transportation, people turned to the Metro and Ferry services to travel between Howrah and Kolkata.

The Howrah Maidan-Esplanade stretch of the Green Line witnessed a significant increase in passenger count. Metro Railway reported that around 47,000 passengers travelled on this line until 5 PM on Tuesday, compared to 28,000 on the same day last week.