Mysuru: Traffic on Mysuru-Bengaluru road was held up for over an hour this morning at Kalasthavadi on the outskirts of the city as about 250 farmers from Naganahalli, Palahalli, Lakshmipura and other villages resorted to a snap stir and blocked the busy road demanding water to canals.

The Police were caught napping as the farmers had not taken prior permission from them to stage the stir, thus throwing traffic out of gear, inconveniencing the motorists who were left fuming in despair.

On receiving information, Police Personnel from Srirangapatna rural, Metagalli and NR Stations rushed to the spot to defuse the situation. They warned the farmers that they could be arrested for not seeking prior information to stage the stir.

Unmindful of the warning the farmers were prepared to court arrest and be jailed but demanded water to canals. As the situation had reached a flash point, the cops realising the gravity spoke to their higher-ups and decided not to arrest the farmers. After a long wait for permission from higher ups, the Police managed to dissuade the farmers from holding the motorists to ransom. The traffic returned to normalcy after over an hour