KARACHI, May 30: A Massive traffic jam was witnessed in the central part of the city on Tuesday as two major thoroughfares were blocked by people protesting against the prolonged power breakdowns in their localities.

People blocked Nawab Siddique Ali Khan Road, running between Lasbella Bridge and Nazimabad Chowrangi, and S. M. Taufeeq Road between Teen Hatti Bridge and Liaquatabad flyover. Due to the blockade, the vehicles reaching the thoroughfares from different directions got stuck at Lasbella, Nazimabad, Teen Hatti and Karimabad intersections.

The power breakdown also rendered traffic signals inoperative and the traffic police personnel moved in to regulate the traffic flow failed to handle the massive clogging at so many places.

Long queues of vehicles were seen on Jehangir Road, Nishtar Road, Karimabad, Nazimabad, etc.

DIG Traffic Falak Khurshid said that the street protests against power failures caused severe disruption in traffic flow in the central part of the city and the traffic police made all out efforts to ease out the congestions as traffic signals had also stopped functioning due to the power failure. It was observed that the traffic police miserably failed to regulate traffic manually and chaos like situation prevailed at Teen Hatti, Jamshed Road, Nishtar Road, Lasbella, Nazimabad, Pak Colony, Karimabad, Sir Shah Suleman Road and other link roads.

For several hours, the traffic jam prevailed as everyone seemed to be in hurry and wanted to get out of the traffic mess first.

Another traffic jam occurred near Gulbai and on Mauripur Road as people took to the street and staged a sit-in. They raised slogans against the water board and the city government for reducing the supply of drinking water. The road blockade caused traffic congestions.

Police and law enforcement agencies reached the spot and dispersed the protestors, clearing the road for normal traffic flow.