The claims made by the traffic police and the district administration during the Ardh Kumbh Mela and snan days, that they were about to open the hill by-pass road as an alternative to cope with heavy rush of pilgrims, have fallen flat as the forest officials say it is cutting through the reserve forest.
The long traffic snarls found on National Highway- 58 on weekends and snan days bear testimony to the failure of the traffic police to open up the alternative road. On Sunday, traffic moved at a snail’s pace on the Haridwar-Dehradun stretch, landing the people in inconvenience. They got stuck for hours as the traffic jam continued while they were on way to BHEl and SIDCUl townships.
Built at an estimated expenditure of `32 crores, the hill by-pass road would give respite to the people from the traffic jams, claimed the traffic police. But the road remaining closed at the behest of the forest officials for the past two months has failed to meet the expectation.
Speaking to The Pioneer, deputy director, Rajaji National Park Kishen Chand said, “The hill by-pass route cannot be open for the public all the while. The Court has given orders to open it only when it is emergency. It comes under the conserved area.”
With the onset of char dham pilgrimage, the influx of pilgrims has increased in the holy city. The locals are bearing the brunt of things as it is taking them hours to cover a distance as little as 10 kms.
A daily commuter to SIDCUl from Kharkhari area Santosh Parasher said, “If the hill by-pass is opened for the local people it would fetch us respite and National highway would not be blocked as it is happening now. The vehicles moving from Dehradun to Delhi can be routed through the hill by-pass which would ease the traffic on the highway.”
The City Vyapar Mandal president Sanjeev Nayar echoed the same, saying that the hill by-pass should be kept in its readiness so that it can survive showers. What happens is that even a single shower leads to mountain slides, making the road unfit to commute, he said.