Simultaneous ASHA workers & ISF rallies choke Kolkata roads, massive traffic jam in Esplanade, Moulali

Kolkata is witnessing a day of massive traffic disruption on Wednesday as hundreds of ASHA (Accredited Social Health Activists) workers took to the streets for a planned march to Swasthya Bhawan. Demanding a hike in their monthly honorarium to ₹15,000 and the regularisation of services, the protesters converged on major transit points, including Sealdah and Howrah stations, early in the morning. The situation escalated when the workers, prevented from reaching Salt Lake by police barricades, diverted their march toward Dharmatala, effectively blocking several key arterial roads in the heart of the city.

The protest caused a complete standstill at the Moulali crossing and on the Sealdah Bridge, with southbound traffic being diverted for several hours. Commuters across central and north Kolkata faced harrowing delays as the blockade spread to SN Banerjee Road and the Dorina crossing. Simultaneously, the impact was felt in Salt Lake and on the EM Bypass, where traffic movement near the Chingrihata Flyover was severely disrupted due to the intensified security and the gathering of workers near the health department headquarters.

Adding to the chaos, a simultaneous foundation day gathering by the Indian Secular Front (ISF) at the Sahid Minar premises further strained the city's transport network. While the Kolkata Traffic Police worked to restore normalcy by 1:30 pm, several arterial roads like Mayo Road and Red Road remained congested well into the afternoon. Despite warnings from Minister Chandrima Bhattacharya regarding political interference, the ASHA workers maintained their stand, leading to a tense standoff with police personnel at the Kolkata Municipal Corporation building.