HUBBALLI: Monday, which was said to be auspicious as per the Hindu calendar for candidates of different parties, turned out to be a bad day for commoners in Hubballi due to rampant traffic jams and unexpected diversions.
As Rajanna Koravi, JD(S) candidate for Hubballi-Dharwad Central constituency, started his procession from Siddappajjana Math in Unkal, traffic got jammed up on Hubballi-Dharwad corridor.
In the beginning of the procession, vehicles and city buses travelled from Hubballi till Unkal, returned to Unkal Cross and moved via Sainagar Road, Taj Nagar and Sri Nagar Cross.
Vehicles coming from Dharwad were also diverted via Sri Nagar Cross and Sainagar Road. Following this, traffic was struck for two hours. NWKRTC drivers said each bus took over an hour to commute from Srinagar Cross to Unkal Cross, which is distance of just 5km. When the procession moved towards Hubballi, vehicles coming from Dharwad were diverted at various places including Hosur and Cotton Market.
When vehicles moved via Deshpande Nagar, they were again struck by a BJP procession which had started from Nagashettikoppa. As the rally moved ahead, Circuit House Road was jam packed and drivers had to struggle to get out of the jam.
When the procession reached Court Circle, the
traffic jam was extended till Keshwapur on the Hubballi-Vijayapura national highway, on Gadag road and on Old Pala Badami Road. Though police diverted all vehicles arriving from Gadag and Vijayapura, they could not control the jam at Desai Cross and Deshpande Nagar.
Sitting MLA and Congress candidate Prasad Abbayya contributed to the traffic jam at Indi pump, Old Hubballi, Ghantikeri, Durgad Bail and Koppikar Road. People who had come to the market had to wait for over two hours as political workers were moving slowly. Women, children and others were found taking shelter in shops to avoid the hot sun during the procession.
As HDMC and the tahsildar offices are located on Lamington Road and in neighboring premises, police had blocked the entry of all vehicles at Saibaba Temple, Channamma Circle, Koppikar Road and at Pinto Circle to facilitate candidates file their nomination.
Traffic resumed to normalcy only by afternoon.