Delhi: Limited operations at 3 ISBTs as a precautionary measure

NEW DELHI: The Kashmere Gate Inter-State Bus Terminal, which has been catering to up to 700 buses from neighbouring states since it reopened after seven months on November 3, saw only 73 buses arrive on Sunday.
The ISBT, in fact, remained shut on Friday and Saturday due to the ongoing protests by farmers, which has affected inter-state movement of traffic."As most of the buses at Kashmere Gate ISBT arrive from Punjab, Himachal Pradesh and Haryana, very few could be seen on Sunday. However, the ISBT was closed on Friday as a precautionary measure by the district administration to avoid crowding in the absence of adequate number of buses," an official said.
Sources said since a large number of buses couldn't arrive at the ISBT on Friday due to the choked border points between Delhi and Haryana, chaotic scenes were witnessed at the ISBT. It is then that it was decided to close the ISBT as a safety measure.
Before the Covid outbreak, 3,467 buses arrived to the capital dailyy and the largest number of these - 1,636 - arrived at Kashmere Gate ISBT, followed by 1,210 at Anand Vihar ISBT and 621 at the facility at Sarai Kale Khan. The combined number had come down to around 1,700 after the ISBTs reopened earlier this month due to a cap of 50% on the number of arrivals, implemented as part of a SOP to ensure social distancing measures at ISBTs.
On Sunday, a total 876 buses arrived at the three ISBTs, with the highest - 638 - at Anand Vihar ISBT, followed by 165 buses at Sarai Kale Khan ISBT.
"The number of buses was higher at Anand Vihar ISBT as buses from UP and Uttarakhand arrive here and there wasn't much traffic disruption on Delhi-UP border. However, there was a congregation of farmers at this border on Sunday too, which resulted in around 25% reduction in the number of buses arriving at the ISBT," the official claimed. "There wasn't much problem in Sarai Kale Khan ISBT too as mostly buses from Rajasthan arrive here. The major problem is on GT-Karnal Road and that's why Kashmere Gate ISBT has been the worst affected," the official added.