Delhi Police Allow Traffic Movement At Singhu & Ghazipur Border After Farmers Vacate Protest Site

After over one year, the Delhi Police allowed traffic movement for all vehicles at Singhu and Ghazipur border.

Farmers return home from Singhu border protest site (Image: PTI)

New Delhi: The last batch of protesting farmers left the Singhu border on Tuesday and the barricades that were erected to prevent the protesting farmers from moving towards the national capital, were dismantled and cleared. After over a year, the Delhi Police on Wednesday allowed traffic movement as well as opened two carriageways at the Singhu border.

Speaking to the media, Brijesh Yadav, Deputy Commissioner of Police (outer north) said, "It has been decided that Singhu border be opened from Delhi side also. It has been opened for all vehicles."

The Singhu Border on the Delhi-Chandigarh highway had been the epicentre of the farmers' movement against the three central farm laws.

Farmers started leaving the protest site on the Delhi-Haryana border on Saturday after the Samyukt Kisan Morcha (SKM) suspended the agitation following the repeal of the farm laws and the government conceding to its other demands.

Only one part of the road was opened. The traffic was opened only for smaller vehicles such as bikes as the road needs to be repaired at many parts which have been damaged due to the protest. It is high time the authorities repair the stretch soon and open the traffic properly, Jitin Dabas, a resident of Singhu village said, reported PTI.

According to one of the daily commuters, "One had to make a detour to reach Haryana and Punjab. Even if one wanted to go to Murthal, one had to take peripheral highways. Opening of traffic on the stretch will now save time and money of commuters."

Besides the Singhu border, farmers, mainly from Punjab, Haryana, and Uttar Pradesh, had laid siege to Delhi's Tikri and Ghazipur borders on November 26 last year.

The roads have already been cleared for commuters at the Tikri border and traffic is plying on the stretch, police said.

The traffic has started at the Ghazipur border also today as the last batch of farmers left the site on Wednesday morning. 

The officials of the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) inspected the road to assess any damage to the infrastructure and the traffic is running smoothly at Ghazipur border.

The farmers began leaving the protest sites after the Samyukt Kisan Morcha (SKM) - an umbrella organization of farmer bodies - suspended the agitation following the repeal of the Centre's three farm laws and the government conceding to its other demands.

The farm laws were repealed by Parliament on November 29.

(With PTI inputs)