BHUBANESWAR: With a few weeks left for Durga Puja, the Commissionerate Police on Thursday held a preparatory meeting here to ensure smooth and peaceful celebration of the festival.
The festival is set to be celebrated from October 16 to 21. The meeting chaired by Bhubaneswar-Cuttack police commissioner S Dev Datta Singh was also attended by additional commissioner Narasingha Bhola, and MLAs Babu Singh, Ananta Narayan Jena, Susant Kumar Rout and Naba Kishor Mallick.
The representatives of the Bhubaneswar MP and various puja committees also attended the meeting. The discussion focused on smooth coordination among Commissionerate Police, puja committees, BMC, TPCODL and other departments to ensure a peaceful festival.
Suggestions on security, traffic management, crowd control, tree trimming, processions and immersion arrangements were also discussed to ensure safety of the public. Elaborate security and traffic arrangements covering Sasthi to Bhasani were also reviewed.
Addressing mediapersons, Singh said police along with officials of other departments will conduct advance joint inspections and set up round-the-clock control rooms near seven important medhas. Special security will be provided for the chandi medhas, besides adequate police deployment ensured around puja pandals for crowd management and robust traffic measures.
“Special focus will also be laid on security of the visitors. Police personnel in plain clothes will be deployed for safety of women and mobile patrolling will be carried out at sensitive areas. CAPF, STU and striking forces will be stationed at strategic locations, while ODRAF personnel mobilised at immersion ghats,” he added.
About 300 officers of various ranks, 40 platoons of police force and one company of CAPF will be deployed to maintain law and order. Another 40 platoons of police force comprising home guards, women constables and others will be mobilised during the festival, the police commissioner informed.
Besides, seven additional platoons of police force will be deployed during Ravan Podi and Bhasani. Police asked all puja committees and the citizens to cooperate with the prescribed safety, traffic and crowd-management guidelines to ensure smooth celebrations.
This year, around 193 medhas will be set up in the city, including 49 (category - A or top-tier pandals), 71 (category-B) and 73 (category-C) along with 24 chandi medhas and seven meena bazaars. As part of the festivities, eight Ravan Podi sites and mass immersion processions have been identified in the city.
