ISLAMABAD: Defence Day featured a bout of inconvenience for many of the city’s residents after they were caught in a traffic jam due to the diversion of traffic around F-9 Park.

A traffic police official said that the Prime Minister and the President, as well as other figures, were travelling to F-9 Park to watch the air show.

“Traffic police diverted traffic from all around the park. Those who wanted to from F-10 to F-7 were diverted to Huqman Luqman Road in front of Karachi Company. Similarly, traffic on other sides of the park was diverted to service road,” the official said.

‘Another reason for the rush was the number of people coming to see the air show. Since the main routes were closed, people got stuck in traffic,” he added.

“A number of people who were stuck in traffic went to green belts and watched the air show from there,” the official said, adding that the roads were opened once VIP movement had ceased.

“People were able to enter and leave from all over the park after security clearance, so they only faced a problem for a few minutes. It was a big day, and this is the first time it was celebrated with so much enthusiasm, so people must have enjoyed the show even if they couldn’t reach the park,” he said.

Published in Dawn, September 7th, 2015

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