Pre-Diwali shopping, Diljit concert cause traffic snarls in Delhi

New Delhi: Long traffic queues were witnessed at several parts of the national capital on Sunday as people thronged the markets ahead of Diwali, while heavy rush for back-to-back concerts of Punjabi singer Diljit Dosanjh also hit vehicular movement in some parts of south Delhi.

Traffic was hit near the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium, the venue for Dosanjh's second concert in as many days as part of his "Dil-Luminati India Tour 2024", as thousands lined up to catch a glimpse of the popular singer-actor.

According to the Delhi Police, adequate deployment has been made in and around the concert venue to maintain law and order.

A traffic advisory issued by the police said movement of heavy motor vehicles from the JLN Stadium red light to the BP Marg has been restricted from 4 pm to 11 pm. Commuters have been advised to avoid BP Marg, Lodhi Road, Lala Lajpat Rai Marg and stretches around the JLN Stadium during these hours.

Long queues of vehicles were also seen on the Mathura Road.

“We were going to our relatives’ place in east Delhi to give them Diwali gifts. The traffic on Mathura Road was heavy as compared to usual Sundays, leaving the cars crawling," Ashish Singh, a resident of Faridabad, said.

Similar situation was witnessed in northwest Delhi’s Rohini area.

Mohit Saxena, a resident of Model Town, said, "There was heavy traffic on the stretch between Madhuban Chowk and Rohini East Metro station, which is quite common during the festival season." Heavy traffic was also seen on the stretch from Najafgarh to Nangloi and on Rohtak Road.