Curbs still in place at Noida & Ghaziabad borders, Delhi cops insist on passes

Noida/Ghaziabad: As Delhi, too, started checking for IDs and passes, it was commuters who bore the brunt on Tuesday. Many officer-goers and factory workers said though they had the required documents to be allowed by Noida police, they had to return from the border in the absence of any pass from the Delhi government.
For most, Tuesday sprung a surprise as the Delhi cops had so far been relatively lenient in allowing Noida and Ghaziabad residents to their workplaces in the capital. A head constable of Delhi Police deployed at the border said the checking started following an order from lieutenant governor’s office. “The checking will continue this week,” he added.
But the double layer of checking led to chaos and kilometre-long snarls on the DND Flyway.
Zamir Ahmed, a resident of Bulandshahr who was travelling with his 60-year-old father towards the anaj mandi in Okhla, was stopped by the Delhi cops. “Earlier, too, we would visit the mandi once or twice a week but were never stopped. This time, the cops are asking for a pass,” he said.
Ajay Ghosh, who works with a company manufacturing ayurvedic products in Noida, was also stopped from returning to the capital as he did not have a pass.
“I pleaded with them that I needed to return to Delhi as my wife there is a cancer patient. But they said I would have to stay back in Noida in the absence of a pass. I have been told to meet the DCP. Now, I’ll head to the police picket at the Chilla border,” he said.
At UP Gate, too, the queue of vehicles stretched several kilometres during the rush hours as the checkings continued. “On Sunday, we received an email from our company that asked us to join office from Monday morning. But Delhi Police isn’t allowing me. I showed them a copy of the email, but they told me to return,” said Prashant Kumar, a Vijay Nagar resident who works in Delhi.