MUMBAI: The Bombay High Court on Wednesday handed over possession of the land adjoining the Koregaon Battle memorial to the state government till January 2 to ensure the safety of the memorial and the people visiting it on January 1, even as the district administration said several measures had been implemented, including use of drone cameras, for maintaining law and order.
The state government had moved an application through the Pune district collector before the Bombay High Court, seeking possession of the land adjoining the war memorial at Bhima Koregaon between December 30 and January 2. The permission was sought to facilitate the efforts to maintain law and order in the backdrop of the violence there on January 1, 2018.
Accepting the request, Justice B P Colabawala granted the permission to hand over the land to the state government. The government has assured that status quo would be maintained and the land would be handed over to the owners by January 12. Pune’s collector Naval Kishor Ram on Wednesday said the administration would keep a tight vigil in the area with the help of 11 drone cameras, among other measures.
The district administration has been interacting with the locals in adjoining villages as they are apprehensive in the wake of this year’s violence. The exercise has helped the administration build confidence among the people. “This will help us a lot in maintaining the law and order situation this year,” Ram said.
Keeping in view the large number of visitors expected, the administration has made arrangements for 300 water tankers, 150 buses and 11 parking lots. Police deployment, too, has been increased 15-fold.
Building confidence through interaction
The district administration has been interacting with the locals in adjoining villages who are apprehensive in the wake of the violence on January 1 this year. This exercise has helped the administration build confidence.