Kolkata, Oct. 22 -- The state administration has tightened security at immersion ghats across Kolkata following the deaths in a stampede at the Chorbagan Sarbojanin Durga Puja pandal, with additional personnel and equipment deployed to prevent accidents during idol immersion.
Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari inspected security arrangements at Babughat, holding discussions with police and National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) officials. He also inspected the ghats from the river.
Police have been deployed at 28 ghats along the Hooghly, five along the Adi Ganga and 34 waterbodies and lakes. Police pickets have also been set up at around 200 important road junctions across the city. 18 IPS officers have been assigned to supervise immersion arrangements, including 12 in Kolkata and two each in Howrah, Barrackpore and Chandannagar.
Immersions began at the ghats after noon on Wednesday. This year, cranes have been dispensed with for lifting idols into the river. Instead, additional trolleys and labourers have been arranged to handle idols more carefully and remove their structures swiftly. Nine trolleys have been placed at Nimtala and 12 at Babughat, with 300 labourers deployed.
The administration has also arranged 25 life-saving boats, NDRF teams, river patrols and municipal ambulances to deal with emergencies. Special police deployment will continue at the ghats between 4 pm and 10 pm from October 21 to 24.
Adhikari has directed officials to ensure that idols are given a respectful farewell without damage during immersion. The process continued on Ekadashi, with district administrations instructed to follow the same safety measures.
By 6 pm on Wednesday, 604 idols had been immersed in the Hooghly.
Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Millennium Post.