Bandh effect: chaos on city roads as borders closed for traffic

Vehicular movement on key routes hit as police place barricades to stall protesters

Delhi on Monday morning witnessed heavy traffic jams in several areas as borders were closed for movement following the Bharat Bandh call by farmers protesting against the three farm reform laws. The traffic situation eased later in the day.

Showing solidarity with the farmers, Delhi Congress chief Ch. Anil Kumar visited the Ghazipur border and joined the protesters. Mr. Kumar said the farmers have been sitting on protest for the past 10 months but Prime Minister Narendra Modi, “who has time to visit the construction site of the Central Vista project, has no time to listen to their demands”.

“Farmers are educated and they understand the long-term implications of the three anti-farm laws. In the long run, the laws will edge farmers out of the farming sector, with a select few corporate houses dictating terms to them,” Mr. Kumar said. He added that the governments of Prime Minister Modi and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal were responsible for the massive traffic jams in the Capital, as they had “consistently refused to listen to the farmers’ demands”. “The farmers had no other option but to call an all-India bandh to awaken the sleeping governments,” he said.