Elaborate security arrangements for Ganesha procession in Shivamo

Shivamogga’s district administration and police have put the city under a tight security and traffic plan for Friday’s immersion procession of the Ganesha idol installed by the Hindu Mahasabha.

The day-long procession is expected to draw large crowds from Shivamogga and outside, as it does every year, and officials have framed arrangements around both crowd management and law and order.

Procession route through key city roads

The procession will start from Bheemeshwara Temple and move through S.P.M. Road, Ramanna Shreshti Park, Gandhi Bazar Main Road, S.N. Circle, A.A. Circle, Nehru Road, Gopi Circle, Durgigudi, Jail Circle, Shivamurthy Circle, Mahaveer Circle, D.V.S. Circle, Convent Road, and Kote Road.

The idol will then be immersed in the Tunga River near Bheemeshwara Temple.

The event carries added significance because of past instances in the city that triggered communal tension and a spate of law-and-order cases.

The scale of the procession has again brought attention to Shivamogga, with elaborate arrangements and a display of devotional and artistic fervour visible across several localities.

Organisers detail preparations

At a press conference in Shivamogga on Thursday, the organising committee outlined the arrangements made for the procession.

Speaking to reporters, Shivamogga MLA S.N. Channabasappa said the Hindu Mahasabha has been installing the Ganesha idol to mark the festival for the past 82 years.

He said several traffic circles across the city had been decorated with artistic displays depicting Hindu mythological and historical figures.

Channabasappa also said various youth and pro-Hindu organisations had made preparations to ensure that the procession passed off peacefully.

Some organisations, he added, would distribute juice, sweets, and prasad to devotees taking part in the procession.

Traffic curbs and school holiday

Deputy Commissioner Prabhulinga Kavilakatti has issued a notification on traffic management for the day.

The notification diverts vehicles entering and leaving the city and bans parking and vehicular movement along the entire procession route for the duration of the event.

In view of the scale of the celebrations, several schools in the city have declared a holiday for Friday.

More than 4,500 personnel deployed

Briefing the media on security arrangements, Shivamogga Superintendent of Police B. Nikhil said the event would be closely monitored through a large deployment of personnel.

He said the deployment would comprise over 4,500 police personnel.

The deployment includes five officers of the rank of SP/Additional SP, 22 Deputy SPs, 164 inspectors, around 300 police sub-inspectors, and nearly 4,000 police staff and home guards.

Nikhil said 12 platoons of the Karnataka State Reserve Police and 10 District Armed Reserve platoons would be deployed for the event.

Quick response teams and two companies of the Rapid Action Force will also be part of the security arrangements.

Seven fire units and four ambulance teams will be stationed along the route, he said.

The entire event will be kept under watch through CCTV cameras and mobile camera units.

The SP added that, as a precautionary measure, the police had already registered nearly 900 preventive cases and externed around 35 persons.

The security, traffic and emergency arrangements are being put in place for a procession that combines large public participation, an extended route through the city, and a law-and-order context shaped by earlier incidents.

Source: The Hindu