Bengalureans start New Year party in the afternoon

New Year celebrations began early in the streets as city police barricaded major streets by evening to prevent revellers from gathering in view of Covid restrictions.

With night curfew in place, youngsters converged on the city’s party hubs: Church Street, Brigade Road, Koramangala and Indiranagar. The turnout may not be so huge as in the previous years, but it made business owners happy. As the New Year falls on the weekend, people got into the spirit of celebration quite early.

Pubs that get filled up in the evening saw patrons walking in for lunch. College students formed most of the crowd prancing the streets in
the afternoon.

“The walk-in crowd started at around 11.30 am only. It could be said that a good amount of footfall was observed until 5.45-6 pm,” said Deepak Batavia, president of the Church Street Shop Owners’ Association. He added that while people were interested in continuing the party even during the evening, confusion over the curfew prompted some to leave early.

From around 3 pm, many young people were seen on MG Road, Brigade Road, Indiranagar 12th Main and Koramangala, taking selfies and entering their favourite eateries and pubs.

Except for the on and off rains which returned to the city after weeks, the pleasant cloudy and cool weather made it easier for the crowd to spend more time outdoors.

By evening, many frantically searched for cabs, anxious to return home before the curfew came into effect. Cab services were severely affected in the Central Business District (CBD) since the police order said major roads will be closed by 6 pm.

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