After lockdowns were announced in Delhi and 16 Uttar Pradesh districts on Sunday night, Gautam Budh Nagar police sealed its borders, which created problems for vehicular movement in general and spelt harrowing times even for personnel delivering essential services on Monday morning.

People alleged that they have been facing long snarls on the Delhi-Noida direct flyway and the Sector-14-Mayur Vihar border connecting the two cities.

“It’s been more than half an hour and I have hardly moved 50 feet. I am coming from Ghaziabad and I have to reach Jaypee hospital in Noida where I work,” said Naveen Kumar Sharma, who was stuck at the Mayur Vihar junction around 9 am on Monday.

Jyoti Jain, a physician working in Fortis Hospital, Noida, said there should be a separate lane for doctors. “I have already been stuck in a jam for more than an hour,” Jain said.

Police officials at the border were letting banking personnel, vans full of groceries and doctors pass through. However, checking IDs and dealing with non-essential commuters were leading to delays.

An elderly woman who refused to share her name was seen at the Mayur Vihar-Noida border, urging the police to let her pass. Her husband died in Lucknow and she was on her way there. After a while, the police allowed her to pass.

“I am a manager at a pharmacy in Sector 78 (in Noida)…but the police are not letting me through because my ID is on my phone. They have refused to even look at it. With the snarl and the journey back home to get the physical ID, I will be extremely late for work,” said Raj Kumar, a resident of Delhi’s Mandavli.

Police officials believe that the situation will improve as the day progresses.

“I have spoken to commuters myself about the guidel