Despite the Calcutta High Court’s mandate to stop the movement of processions for the annual Trinamool rally in Dharmatala between 9am and 11am, commuters on Monday morning were greeted with lesser public transport, congested roads and slow movement of traffic across the city.
With people travelling from the outskirts of the city and other regions of West Bengal to attend the gathering at Dharmatala, roads near Howrah Station and Sealdah Station were congested since morning.
“There was a massive jam on Howrah Bridge at 5am. The Kolkata-bound traffic is still slow as rallies enter the city with hundreds of people walking,” said Subhash, a cab driver from south Kolkata.
There was also a dearth of public transport in several areas, with buses and autorickshaws booked for ferrying party supporters to the venue. With fewer cabs on the streets, the Metro did the heavy lifting.
“The ETA for cab pickup was more than 15 minutes today. Usually, it is around five to six minutes in the morning,” said Debanjali Nag, who travels every day for work to New Town from south Kolkata’s Mudiali. Another commuter from north Kolkata’s Shyambazar said, “I am working from home today. I had to go to Park Street. I usually take a bus, but today there weren’t many. I walked to the Metro station, which was jam-packed. So I decided to come back.”
With a massive stage set up on Dharmatala for the July 21 TMC programme, free traffic movement between north and south Kolkata has been disrupted. “Traffic snarls are inevitable today, at least till evening. I will not be moving out of south Kolkata and accept bookings likewise,” said another cab driver.
