Batala road residents block traffic

Tribune News Service

Amritsar, May 13

Residents of the Batala road, seeking construction of a service lane, blocked traffic outside a mall here and burnt an effigy of the state government. The residents stated that when Prime Minister Narendra Modi was to visit the holy city, many of the roads were constructed overnight.

Sanjeev Rampal, who is leading the protest said, “The same government which can construct many roads in the city due to the PM’s visit is so indifferent to the problems of the general public that it has not initiated the construction of the service lane even as residents have been demanding it for months.”

The residents said they have been forced to block the traffic which is adversely affecting common residents because the government is not paying any heed to their demand.

The residents of the Batala road are seeking a service lane on the stretch where work on the BRTS project is going on. They had given a seven day-ultimatum to the government on May 3. They had been holding regular dharnas for the past four days, demanding that the construction of the service lane be started.

The residents complained that due to the ongoing work on the BRTS project, all street lights from the road have been removed. They stated that the construction work has also left the road with large portholes. As a result, commuters are facing various problems.