Heavy traffic chokes routes to Central Delhi

New Delhi: Commuters travelling towards central Delhi from the eastern parts of the national capital and Noida faced heavy traffic due to VIP movement towards and away from Rajghat on Monday.

President Droupadi Murmu and Prime Minister Narendra Modi offered floral tributes to the Father of the Nation at his memorial in Rajghat.

Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar, Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and Housing and Urban Affairs Minister Hardeep Singh Puri also paid homage to the Mahatma at Rajghat.

According to police, those commuting via ITO, Pragati Maidan and Barapulla faced heavy traffic as these routes were completely choked.

Areas around ITO, including the stretch leading from Lady Irwin College to Bahadur Shah Zafar Marg, saw heavy traffic for a few hours in the morning.

A senior traffic police official said, “We had deployed additional traffic personnel in the area as there was VVIP movement in the area in view of Mahatma Gandhi’s Anniversary at Rajghat, which followed the same route.”

“From Akshardham to Rajghat, there is a heavy traffic jam. There were points when the vehicle was at a standstill for at least 45 minutes. Since I had an important meeting to attend in Connaught Place, I had to reach on time but due to the traffic snarls, I could not make it on time,” said Anil Agrawal, a commuter.

Another officer-goer said, “Even though I started my commute on time, I was stuck at Rajghat for over an hour. There was absolutely no movement on the stretch.” Heavy traffic jams were also reported from Dwarka where commuters said the vehicles were moving at a snail’s pace.