Bengaluru: Commuters had a nightmarish experience after they were stranded on roads at Majestic and surrounding areas for hours following a protest by Anganwadi workers on Monday.
As over 5,000 Anganawadi workers from across the state went on a rally from City Central Railway Station to Freedom Park, demanding fulfilment of various demands on Monday afternoon, traffic was badly hit. Police closed the stretch from Anand Rao Circle to K.R. Circle and diverted vehicles, but the area witnessed slow movement of traffic throughout the day.
As talks between leaders of the organisation and CM Siddaramaiah failed, workers launched an indefinite strike. Traffic came to a standstill after 6 pm as they slept on the road near the Freedom Park. Traffic piled up on Raj Bhavan Road, Palace Road, Shivananda Circle, Seshadripuram, Okalipura, Vatal Nagaraj Road from Rajaji Nagar entrance towards Platform Road, Krishna Flour Mill Junction and Shanthala junction, Basaveshwara Circle, Khoday's Circle, Race Course Road, Navarang Theatre Junction, Malleswaram, Swastik Circle and surrounding areas.
Those who had to catch buses and trains were helpless as they were stranded for hours and no mode of transport helped them. Girish, a private company employee, said that it took him nearly 90 minutes to reach Majestic from Basaveshwara Circle, which is hardly two kilometres. There were also reports of many ambulances getting stuck in the traffic jam.
