Commonwealth Games: CP roads lead to nowhere

NEW DELHI: The cyclothon, part of the Commonwealth Games, proved to be a major inconvenience to Delhiites as CP and all the major roads leading to it remained blocked for traffic all through Sunday. With the heart of the city cordoned off, those traversing from north to south Delhi or west to east Delhi faced a tough time getting across. The roads were otherwise deserted and no jams were reported from anywhere.
People headed to the New Delhi Railway Station were forced to take long detours and complained of lack of information on roads that were open."Getting to the railway station was a huge headache as all the roads were virtually blocked. I finally had to take Asaf Ali Road and go an extra 15km just to reach in time for my train. This was after I left my home a good one and a half hours before time," said Puneet Gaur, a resident of Preet Vihar.
Others found it impossible to get across the closed roads due to lack of information on where to go. "I came to CP Outer Circle from Baba Kharak Singh Marg and had to go to ITO for some work. But the road was blocked ahead. All the other roads like Ashoka Road, the route behind Parliament House, were blocked. No one had a clue on which roads are open," said Kamini Gupta, a resident of East Patel Nagar.
The cyclothon started from Sansad Marg, and moved via Red Cross Road, Rajender Prasad Marg, Janpath, Rajpath, Vijay Chowk, CP Outer Circle, Barakhamba Road, Minto Road and Deen Dayal Upadhyay Marg. To facilitate the event, roads were blocked at South Fountain, Rafi Marg, Janpath, Rajpath, Rajender Prasad Marg, Ashok Road, Raisina Road, Tolstoy Marg, Outer Circus Connaught Place, Barakhamba Road, Deen Dayal Upadhyay Marg, Kotla Road, Bhav Bhuti Marg, State Entry Road, Imtiaz Khan Marg and Talkatora Road from midnight till 7pm.
The roads in CP, meanwhile, were unusually empty. Those present at the event said they saw Delhi in a completely new light with the main market closed and not a soul on the roads. Police barricades and Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC) buses parked across the road to stop entry of vehicles into the area.
Police officials said there were some spectators in A, B and C blocks but the numbers were thin. "It was a hot day and there was no effort by the OC to tell people where they could stand and watch the event," said a senior police officer.