Unplanned traffic management and restricting traffic on a major road approaching the venue deprive thousands of enthusiastic people of witnessing the mega air show performed by adventure sports teams of the Indian Air Force (IAF) here on Friday.
Advance light helicopter formations by Sarang, formation aerobatics by Surya Kiran aircrafts and daredevil skydiving by Akash Ganga paratroopers were spectacular performances over the Kathjodi riverbed near Khannagar in the presence of Governor SC Jamir and Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik.
While the show was part of the birth centenary celebrations of legendary pilot-turned-politician Biju Patnaik, around five lakh people had gathered to witness it. However, due to traffic congestions, many could not reach the venue and were left stranded on way only to steal a few glimpses of the aircrafts which zoomed past overhead.
“Restricting the traffic on the Khannagar main road for VIP movements and debarring people from entering into the dry riverbed to witness the show created traffic jams on other roads approaching the venue,” said Subrat Routray of Markatnagar, adding that people on the western limits of the city could not witness the show properly as large foliage on this part of the Ring Road restricted viewing the spectacle.
Moreover, police completely failed in managing the traffic around the venue due to illegal vehicular parking on roads. “Instead of parking at the designated places, vehicles were left stranded on roads,” said a traffic cop, expressing helplessness because a large chunk of policemen were diverted to give protection to the Chief Minister, whose visit to the city on the day was objected to by BJP workers.
Protesting against the Chief Minister’s visit to the city, BJP activists picketed at several places near Madhupatna and Press Chowk, from where more than 25 protestors were taken into preventive custody by the police to clear the traffic for Patnaik’s cavalcade to enter into the city.