Two funerals and a fuming city

Capital crippled as processions clog roads for hours

As politicians and dignitaries rushed in to join the funeral processions of former President R Venkataraman and former Delhi Congress chief Ram Babu Sharma on Wednesday afternoon, Delhiites were left fuming on clogged roads. The funeral processions, which snaked through the heart of the city, threw traffic out of gear leading to jams and snarls for many hours at Connaught Place, ITO, Old Delhi and along the Ring Roads. The ripples were felt all across the city as office-goers were stuck till late evening.

Even the traffic cops were caught unawares. "Though Ram Babu Sharma's death was sudden, the funeral procession of the former President could have been planned. If we had received prior information, we could have issued traffic advisory and avoided the snarls," said a senior traffic police official, wishing anonymity.

The funeral procession of the former President started from his house on Safdarjung Road at around 3 pm. It took around two hours to reach Ekta Sthal on the banks of River Yamuna along the Ring Road.

As President Pratibha Patil, Vice-President Hamid Ansari, Cabinet ministers, former Presidents and vice-presidents, the three defence chiefs, Leader of Opposition LK Advani and Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit attended Venkataraman's funeral, their movement further caused traffic disruptions as routes were sanitised by the police.

The funeral procession of Ram Babu Sharma complicated the situation. Sharma's body was taken from the Delhi Pradesh Congress Committee Office on Deen Dayal Upadhyay Marg in central Delhi at around 1 pm to Nigam Bodh Ghat via ITO and Ring Road. His funeral was attended by Dikshit, her Cabinet ministers and other senior Congress leaders.

"Long route and slow movement of the processions resulted in slowing down of traffic. We did our best," said Joint Commissioner, Traffic Police, SN Srivastava.