The Hindu : Rajpath, India Gate closed for public

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Wednesday, Feb 26, 2003

National

National

Rajpath, India Gate closed for public

By Our Staff Reporter

NEW DELHI FEB. 25. The unscheduled closure of the capital's central vista including Rajpath, India Gate and its lawns for the public for the past two days has left thousands of visitors disheartened. And for tourists who have come to Delhi, it is nothing but their `bad luck' that they could not visit the country's most important landmarks.

Owing to the threat of terrorist strikes in and around India Gate, the Delhi Police are in no mood to take any chance and have deployed police personnel in large numbers there. Para-military forces have also been deployed, particularly at India Gate. Bunkers have also come up on these roads. Barricades have been erected on all the roads approaching the round-about and police personnel are monitoring traffic movement to avert any untoward incident. ``This is unusual at this time of the year, particularly when the heavy security deployment for almost four long months for the Republic Day celebrations was being relaxed. Going by the capital's weather, the maximum number of tourists come here at this time of the year but for the past three days things have come to a standstill,'' said an NDMC gardener. Tourists coming to visit India Gate are being asked to return as the police and para-military personnel deployed there are not allowing them to move around the lawns.

``Only after reaching here did we come to know that India Gate has been made out-of-bounds. We have no choice but to return,'' said Meenakshi, a resident of Chennai who is visiting Delhi along with her family. Even kids are feeling disappointed as they are not being allowed to visit the newly-renovated children's park at India Gate. Police fear terrorists could target children. It was during the last weekend that students from various schools not only from Delhi, but also from nearby regions, had come to visit the park but felt let down when they found it closed.

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