A security alert was issued for all places of worship in the state, following blasts at Bodh Gaya in Bihar on Sunday morning. Policemen have been asked to be be vigilant and spruce up security at important locations. Frisking and checking have been taken up across Hyderabad and other places.
With Ramzan and Bonalu festival coinciding this year, police are all the more vigilant. “We have asked all the unit officers, commissioners and superintendents of police to be more vigilant at places of worship and other crowded places. A number of checkposts have been put in place,” said VSK Kaumudi, additional director general of police (law and order).
He further said, “This ongoing month is crucial for us with rathyatras, Bonalu, Ramzan and gram panchayat elections and our officers are asked to be extremely vigilant.”
Hyderabad has been a victim of similar attacks in the past, be it at Sai Baba temple, Mecca Masjid and Lumbini Park, and the recent Dilsukhnagar twin blasts, which left hundreds of people dead or injured.
Anjani Kumar, additional CP (law and order), said, “We have intensified checking at all important places. Vehicles and lodges are being checked for suspicious things. Anti-sabotage teams are also deployed.”
Security has been intensified in and around Sri Venkateswara temple, Tirumala, which draws a large number of pilgrims on any given day. TTD chief vigilance and security officer GVG Ashok Kumar said, “We are alert every day and in the wake of bomb blasts in Bodh Gaya, we have intensified the security. Apart from routine vehicle checking, we have deployed bomb disposal squads and requesting the public to be alert and inform us if anything found suspicious.”
Four of the nine blasts that rocked Bodh Gaya took place in the Mahabodhi temple complex (a UNESCO world heritage site), and near the Bodhi Tree where Gautama Buddha was said to have attained enlightenment.