Dehradun’s Traffic Comes to a Standstill due to Heavy Rain and Route Diversions

Dehradun’s traffic came to a standstill on Monday due to heavy rain in the city and route diversions. Many parts of the city faced massive traffic jams.

President Pranab Mukerjee was in Dehradun on Monday, and police had imposed traffic restrictions on Dehradun-Haridwar Road, which compounded the traffic jam problem.

While returning to Delhi, Mr. Mukherjee had to abandon plans to take a chopper to Jolly Grant Airport due to heavy rain in the city, and instead he travelled by road.

“There was a last-minute change in the President’s itinerary. We were told that he would travel to Jolly Grant Airport for Delhi by road as weather conditions were not suitable for the chopper to fly. The contingency route was already planned but traffic restrictions on Dehradun-Haridwar Road added on to city traffic.” Dhirendra Gunjyal, superintendent of police (traffic) said.

“Heavy rain slowed down vehicle movement and reopening of schools led to traffic jams,” he added.

Gandhi Road, Rajpur Road, E C Road, Chakrata Road, Subhash Road and Haridwar Road were worst affected by traffic jams, according to TOI.

Earlier, the meteorological department had issued a heavy to very heavy rain alert for some districts in Uttarakhand, including of Chamoli, Rudraprayag, Pithoragarh, Nainital and Champawat. According to the department, many parts of the state are now experiencing very heavy rainfall.

In the past one week, the state has already received widespread rain in different parts, and showers will continue this week.

According to Met office, Munsiyari and Dharchula in Pithoragarh district have received heavy rainfall.

With heavy rain, threat of cloudbursts and landslide are also looming large over the state.  The state government has advised tourists to avoid travelling to Almora, Mukteshwar and Nainital.