With Bellary Rural MLA B Sriramulu’s padayatra (walkathon) culminating in the city on Sunday, commuters to the city’s bus stand and nerve centre, Majestic, and traffic personnel alike had a harrowing time.
Traffic in and around Majestic was disrupted for more than four hours, mainly near Anand Rao and Mysore Bank Circles and Palace Road. Around 50 traffic police personnel were deployed comprising four inspectors, 10 sub-inspectors and 14 assistant sub-inspectors to maintain order. Vehicles of Sriramulu’s supporters were diverted to Seshadri Road.
As many as 800 buses and 2,000 vans were parked in the periphery of the bus stand; around 15,000 persons attended the launch of the BSR Party.
For traffic personnel around Freedom Park and Mysore Bank and Anand Rao Circles, it was a hectic day trying to control public movement from seven in the morning till evening.
Vehicular movement was worst hit when Sriramulu’s supporters raised slogans during his speech, which attracted the attention of vehicles; lane discipline, unsurprisingly, was flouted at large.
“We had a tiring day. All of Sriramulu’s supporters were on the roads. The rally began at Tripuravasani and snaked its way to Freedom Park. Had the rally been organised on any other day, public outrage would have been directed at us. Such processions ought to be shifted to the city’s outskirts,” Upparpet Division Traffic Inspector Mahajan told Express