Farmers’ protest: Dera Bassi-Zirakpur national highway stretch chock-a-block

Tribune News Service

Gaurav Kanthwal

Mohali, February 12

Road users had a harrowing day as snarl-ups were the order of the day due to barricading and route diversions on the Zirakpur-Dera Bassi stretch since morning. From the Dera Bassi flyover, where traffic was diverted on to the Barwala road, snarls extended till the Ghaggar bridge near Zirakpur on the national highway.

Chandigarh-Delhi NH route alternatives

• Passengers travelling from Chandigarh to Delhi should take the Panchkula-Barwala-Saha-Shahbad-Kurukshetra route or the Panchkula-Barwala-Yamunanagar (NH-344)-Ladwa-Indri route to reach Delhi via Karnal.
• Those traveling from Delhi to Chandigarh can take the Karnal-Indri-Ladwa-Yamunanagar (NH-344)-Panchkula route or travel via Kurukshetra, Shahbad, Saha, Barwala and Panchkula. In case of any uncomfortable situation, commuters can dial 112.

Unions mobilise farmers

A panel of farmer union leaders gathered at Gurdwara Amb Sahib in Mohali before they were taken to Sector 26 for a meeting with government officials. Members of the farmer unions started gathering at Fatehgarh Sahib, Banur and near Shambhu border in the evening.

Haryana cops’ appeal

The Haryana Police have appealed to the public to consider using the rail route as a precautionary measure to travel to Punjab on February 13.

Long queues of vehicles were witnessed on the highway as traffic coming from Chandigarh side and going to Delhi was diverted on to the Barwala-Yamunanagar road.

With the Ambala-Chandigarh highway having been closed to traffic around 12 noon, the Haryana police barricaded the highway near the Jharmari bridge with three-tier fortification, including barricades, concrete walls with barbed wire and iron spikes in concrete mix.

The village roads near Lalru and Ambala remained choked with vehicles as commuters looked for link roads and alternative routes. Ambulances and LPG trucks also remained stuck on narrow roads.

At Jharmari, local residents, who were trying to cross the Ghaggar river on foot, were turned back by cops in the afternoon.

Heavy rush had been witnessed on the link roads in villages till late in the evening. The Dera Bassi-Handesra-Ambala road, near Ambala, too, was choked with vehicles.

Meanwhile, Internet service in and around Lalru continued to remain affected for the second day today due to restrictions in Haryana.

Dera Bassi ASP Vaibhav Chaudhary said, “Punjab-Haryana border has been sealed by the Haryana police on their side in Jharmari since morning. We are regulating traffic at the diversions. Due to heavy rush, there is pressure on village roads but we are working to streamline it.”

Sources said several liquor vends in sensitive zones have been closed down. At the Jharmari blockade, CCTV cameras have been installed to keep an eye on the movement of protesters.

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