Jaipur: Thousands of people travelled across Jaipur Friday to celebrate Raksha Bandhan, leading to heavy crowds at railway stations, bus stands, markets and restaurants and slowing traffic on several key roads.
Heavy crowd at Jaipur Railway station
Heavy crowd at Jaipur Railway station
The festive rush began Thursday evening, with women and girls heading to their brothers’ homes carrying rakhis, sweets and gifts. Crowded markets, meanwhile, saw a surge in last-minute purchases of rakhis, clothes, sweets and other gifts, adding to the pressure on roads.
Sisters tie Rakhi to their brothers at Central Jail
Sisters tie Rakhi to their brothers at Central Jail
The rush was particularly visible at Jaipur’s four major railway stations—Jaipur Junction, Durgapura, Gandhinagar, and Khatipura. Thousands left the city for their hometowns ahead of the festival, with passengers facing difficulty boarding trains amid overcrowding on platforms and near coach entrances. General compartments witnessed especially heavy crowds.“Post afternoon the rush was cleared, and it is likely to continue till Monday morning when people will start returning,” said an officer with the Jaipur division of NWR.Even passengers with confirmed reservations struggled to reach their coaches because of the sheer volume of travellers.Bus stands also witnessed a significant surge. Rajasthan State Road Transport Corporation (RSRTC) had announced free travel for women and girls in its buses within Rajasthan from midnight on Friday to 11.59pm Saturday. However, the facility was not available on AC Volvo buses or buses operating under All India permits. Women travelling to other states were also required to pay the fare for the portion of their journey outside Rajasthan.“They should have given the facility for Volvo buses and also for women travelling outside the state,” said Nisha Singh, who was travelling to Sonipat in Haryana from the Jaipur RSRTC bus stand.Restaurants and eateries across the city also reported a sharp rise in footfall, with families choosing to mark the festival with meals outside their homes. The combined movement of commuters, shoppers and families made Raksha Bandhan one of Jaipur’s busiest festive days.
