THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Tuesday reviewed the preparations for the Attukal Pongala festival, assessing the arrangements made by various departments. He emphasised the need to ensure clean drinking water and hygienic food for devotees and directed authorities to conduct strict inspections. He also stressed minimising inconvenience to local residents.
To enhance safety, 1,000 female police officers will be deployed for the festival, along with 179 CCTV cameras, a main control room, and a special control room for women. Drones will be used for additional monitoring. Designated parking areas and vehicle inspection points have been arranged, a press release said.
During the review meeting, Devaswom Minister V N Vasavan said that 53.68 lakh devotees participated in the Sabarimala Makaravilakku festival. He urged officials to maintain similar efficiency for the Attukal Pongala festival.
For the first time, female officers from the Fire and Rescue Services will be deployed for Pongala duties. Out of 450 personnel, 50 will be women. A total of 44 fire tenders with high-pressure pumping units will be mobilised during the festival.
The city corporation has rolled out a comprehensive sanitation plan to handle waste generated during the festival. As many as 3,740 sanitation workers will clean up the city, with an estimated 400 tonnes of waste expected to be generated on Pongala day. The health department has deployed 10 additional medical teams, including paediatricians and specialists. Cooling centres will be set up at 10 locations to manage heat-related issues. A dry day will be enforced from 6 am on March 12 to 6 pm on March 13.
The Excise Department will set up a control room at the temple, conduct awareness programmes on de-addiction, and deploy a shadow team for 24x7 surveillance. The KSRTC will operate 20 chain service buses between East Fort and the temple, along with 700 additional buses. Eighteen special trains will run during the festival — four towards Nagercoil and 14 towards Kollam.