NEW DELHI: At first glance, the stretch could be mistaken for a village fairground — rows of white tarpaulin tents, cows tethered to bamboo poles, their owners busy feeding or milking them. But closer, the illusion breaks. Dung, slush and the smell of animals hang heavy in the air. And what should have been a smooth three-lane road shrinks to a single functioning lane. This is not the countryside but an arterial road in northeast Delhi, temporarily transformed into a flood-relief camp.Families displaced by overflowing drains were evacuated and shifted to tents on Pusta Road here. The cattle are their only surviving assets. The unintended consequence of the relief camp: motorists crawl along the three-lane carriageway from Shastri Park that is now reduced to a lane and a half. Even on Friday, a public holiday, cars took four-five minutes to cover 400 metres and the tailback extended up to a kilometre even on a holiday.A day earlier on Thursday, the chaos was worse, with the traffic idling from Shastri Park all the way to Khajuri Chowk. Those headed to Karawal Nagar, Sonia Vihar or Bhajanpura were stuck for hours. Ironically, right above the snarl looms a flyover but it is under construction. With tempers rising, motorists sought desperate alternatives. Many diverted through Shanti Van, Geeta Colony flyover and Gandhi Nagar, but that only shifted the problem — jams soon stretched from Geeta Colony to Shastri Park.Irate drivers removed the barriers blocking an unopened section of the Delhi-Saharanpur Highway (NH709B) to carve out a passage for two-wheelers. With the wait cut to 5-7 minutes, riders zipped past the jam, filming reels that quickly went viral, one of them mockingly titled: “Jam-hit public inaugurates Delhi–Dehradun Expressway.”But the relief was fleeting. By Friday, the same stretch had double barricades to avert any repeat “openings.” Still, the incident sharpened a demand the locals have been making for months: open the Geeta Colony–Mandola section of the highway. Residents argue that this will immediately ease traffic at Khajuri Chowk and take the pressure off existing corridors.
As a tweet on Thursday pleaded, “Please open already constructed Delhi Dehradun Expressway Package 1 flyover Geeta Colony to Karawal Nagar. Due to the Yamuna flood, the Pusta road is 70% occupied by flood victims.” Traffic officials said the situation has arisen due to floods and was temporary. But though traffic cops were present at the Khajuri Chowk, where there wasn’t much chaos, there were none on the stretch where the road had been truncated by tents and cattle.Once fully operational, the Delhi–Dehradun Expressway is expected to cut travel time dramatically — from over six hours now to just under two-and-half hours. Covering a distance of 210 km, the new corridor promises a faster, smoother and uninterrupted journey than the congested routes in use today. The expressway has been designed in four phases, each incorporating modern engineering features aimed at improving both speed and safety. The first phase includes a 32km elevated stretch from Akshardham in Delhi to Baghpat that can be traversed in 25 minutes, providing a swift exit from the capital’s traffic-heavy zones.The Delhi–Dehradun Expressway isn’t just for hill travellers — it will also ease things for the capital’s traffic. Starting at Akshardham, it passes through Geeta Colony, Shastri Park, Sonia Vihar and Mandola, and joins the Eastern Peripheral Expressway. With entry and exit points planned at Geeta Colony, Sonia Vihar, Vijay Vihar and Khajuri Chowk, it will take the load off Pusta Road, Khajuri Chowk and nearby stretches, giving relief to motorists from Karawal Nagar, Bhajanpura and Sonia Vihar.Union highways minister Nitin Gadkari earlier announced the new roadway would be opened by Oct, while project officials have similarly promised that operations would begin at the earliest after the monsoon.But until the flood situation mounts, the road remains a paradox — a lifeline for displaced families but a burden for thousands of motorists. Urban planners say the crisis highlights a deeper flaw: in the absence of designated relief zones, disaster fallout spills into vital public spaces, paralysing traffic and forcing citizens into desperate improvisations.An official from the DM (North East) office said that regular cleaning and defogging were underway. While MCD gaushalas are already full, seven cattle were shifted to Narela Gaushala and Shri Krishna Gaushala, Bawana. However, many local owners insisted on keeping their cattle for safety reasons. “A veterinary doctor is present on site. Four cattle were taken to a veterinary care centre near ITO. Mobile toilets and water tankers have been set up. Traffic cops are also regulating vehicular movement. Efforts are being made to keep cattle safe and minimise inconvenience to people,” the official added .
