BALLARI: With large crowds from different directions thronging the Bharat Jodo Yatra, led by Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, several roads leading to Ballari witnessed traffic jams of over five hours. The National Highway-63 was blocked at Kudatini from 1 pm on Saturday and traffic continued to move slowly till evening. With the heavy movement of trucks from mines, the traffic went haywire in many parts, while buses carrying Congress workers were stuck on the outskirts of the city.
With the road widening work progressing on National Highway 63 and absence of police to manage the traffic, there were gridlocks at many points. Congress workers stopped trucks near Kudatini to allow their vehicles to enter Ballari.
By 2 pm, several vehicles took a U-turn and started going back as they were stuck in the traffic jam about 20 km away from Ballari. With no lane discipline, traffic continued to move slowly till late Saturday evening.
“We left Gadag early, but got stranded just before Ballari. There was no police to manage the traffic outside Ballari leading to chaos. The police should have anticipated the rush and avoided truck movement on the highway to facilitate normal traffic and vehicles going to the rally,” said a Congress worker.
Congress had booked several buses from Gadag, Koppal and Hosapete depots for the rally, causing inconvenience to regular travellers. Many passengers had to wait for long hours at bus stands in Gadag and Koppal to catch buses to Ballari.