Traffic at Dakbungalow roundabout in Patna on Thursday. Picture by Nagendra Kumar Singh

Patna, Feb. 3: A five-minute drive became a 50-minute ordeal in the state capital today, courtesy traffic congestion following “street-smart” protests of Patna Municipal Corporation (PMC) employees over the death of one of their colleagues.

It took as long as 50 minutes to drive from Dakbungalow roundabout to Patna Junction. On a normal day, the distance can be covered in one-third the time walking.

More than 100 PMC employees gathered at Dakbungalow roundabout in the heart of the city around 12.10pm today. They stalled traffic till 1.20pm. Even bicycles were not allowed to move. Bikers were stopped as they attempted to sneak through.

Being at the heart of the city, the blockade at Dakbungalow slowed down the traffic at all arterial roads.

“I started from Gandhi Maidan and it has been over 45 minutes to reach here (at Buddha Colony). I had to push my bike through the traffic, almost,” said Harendra Yadav.

Manoj Ranjan, a resident of Rajendra Nagar, was visibly irritated. “What is wrong? Even the police are acting like audience. I had gone to see off my friend at Patna Junction. On my way back, I got stuck at Buddha Marg. I could not move my bike, as this road mostly remains in capture of auto drivers and rickshaw-pullers. I could not even return because of the vehicles lined up behind me. I only learnt from a passerby about the protests which caused this nuisance,” he told The Telegraph.

The problem started as Avadesh Kumar Verma, a PMC employee, died this morning. His family members blamed the civic body for his death. They alleged that he could not get proper treatment because PMC had not cleared his dues for the past three months.

The protesters said they would not move until the district magistrate or PMC commissioner came to the spot.

The traffic cleared only after the police called the PMC commissioner and informed him about the situation. The protesters budged only after Nirmal Chandra Jha, the PMC additional commissioner, arrived at the spot and gave Rs 10,000 to the family of the deceased.