Delhi: Road caves in near ITO, leads to massive traffic snarls in Central Delhi

Officials broke off bigger portions of the road Tuesday so that commuters do not mistake it for safe ground, said residents.

[related-post]

A senior PWD officer said, “We are waiting for the Delhi Jal Board to repair the trunk sewer before we can start work on the road.”

Special Commissioner of Police (Traffic) Muktesh Chander said traffic had been badly hit on the ITO – Ring Road stretch, with diversions in place till the road is repaired.

Traffic jam at outer ring road after the cave-in. (Express Photo: Cheena Kapoor)

“Traffic had to be closed on the flank where the cave-in occurred on the Ring Road. Oncoming traffic from Ring Road is being directed straight towards the ITO or towards Rajghat crossing. Roads heading towards Central Delhi and Delhi Gate have been closed,” Chander said.

“The diversions caused congestion on many junctions such as ITO, Rajghat junction, Ring Road junction, Vikas Marg and Sarai Kale Khan. They will be in place till the road is repaired. I spoke to the Chief Secretary of the Public Works Department this morning and it was discussed that immediate and continuous repair is needed to get traffic to run smoothly,” Chander added.

Authorities and residents said a small portion of the road caved in on Sunday at about 4 pm. Mehtab (19), who lives in the area, said, “I was standing on the pavement when I saw the road gradually slipping inwards. I alerted my neighbours and we stood on the road to prevent cars from driving on the stretch. By then, the officials arrived and began to survey the degree of damage. Repair work began on Monday afternoon.”