Cops carry out chariot pulling rehearsal in Puri
1
2
Bhubaneswar: With Rath Yatra just one day away, Odisha police on Wednesday carried out a rehearsal in Puri to train personnel in chariot pulling procedures. Adequate security arrangements have been made for smooth conduct of Nabajouban Darshan ceremony on Thursday.
The practice session involved three jeeps serving as substitute chariots, which police personnel pulled. Officers received detailed instructions about their specific duties for ensuring a smooth chariot pulling ceremony.
From the total 205 police platoons assigned for the Rath Yatra, 72 platoons will specifically oversee chariot pulling. "Our priorities include maintaining clear pathways for chariots and establishing security cordons to regulate devotee movement near the chariots," said SP (Puri) Vinit Agrawal.
Officers received strict instructions to maintain vigilance to prevent accidents. On a few previous celebrations, police officers, servitors and devotees who fell while pulling the chariots have been injured. "Foolproof crowd control and stampede prevention measures have been taken to ensure that the chariots are pulled without any untoward incidents," said Agrawal.
After remaining out of bounds for devotees for a fortnight, sibling gods Jagannath, Balabhadra and goddess Subhadra are all set to grant darshan to countless devotees on the occasion of Nabajouban Darshan on Thursday.
by Taboola
by Taboola
Sponsored Links
Sponsored Links
Promoted Links
Promoted Links
You May Like
Giao dịch vàng CFDs với sàn môi giới tin cậy
IC Markets
Tìm hiểu thêm
Undo
Nabajouban Darshan is an essential ceremony preceding Rath Yatra.
The Nabajouban Darshan holds particular importance as the deities have recovered from their symbolic ailment after their ceremonial bath during Debasnan Purnima on June 11. Following tradition, the deities will present themselves to visitors in their renewed form inside the sanctum sanctorum on Thursday and on chariots on Friday.
Temple authorities said herbal paint was applied on the faces of the deities. "Similar to humans preparing for significant occasions, the deities receive special preparation before Rath Yatra. The makeup is essential as the sibling deities' faces became pale during their 15-day treatment," explained Sanjay Kumar Duttamohapatra, a servitor.
Anticipating large crowds, police have put in place necessary arrangements. "We will organise devotees in queues for temple entry. Our officers will provide all required support to visitors," said the SP.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Hans India
2 hours ago
- Hans India
Puri turns into fortress for Rath Yatra
Puri: These aside pilgrim town of Puri on Wednesday turned into a fortress with around 10,000 security personnel deployed for the annual Rath Yatra celebrations of Lord Jagannath on June 27. Besides, over 250 Artificial Intelligence-enabled cameras have been installed at various places in the town for surveillance. The security personnel, including those of Central Armed Forces, participated in a rehearsal to prepare themselves to handle lakhs of devotees who will arrive in the town from every nook and cranny of the country and abroad to get a glimpse of the trinity, Lord Balabhadra, Devi Subhadra and Lord Jagannath. The deities come out of the 12th-century shrine to mingle with devotees cutting across caste, creed and religion once a year. As this year's Rath Yatra celebration will be held post-Pahalgam terror attack, security arrangements have been made keeping different aspects in view. 'An Integrated Command and Control Room has been set up in Puri for the first time. Around 275 AI-enabled CCTV cameras have been installed along the route between Uttara Chhak and Puri town and between Puri and Konark. The live visuals from these cameras will be monitored round the clock,' Odisha Director General of Police (DGP) Y B Khurania said after giving the final touch to the security arrangements made for the mega festival. Khurania said the AI-powered surveillance system will keep watch on traffic movements, crowd surge and help security personnel make a prompt decision and face emergencies. Sub-control rooms have also been set up at key locations, the DGP said. For the first time, NSG (National Security Guard) snipers have been deployed on the rooftops of buildings given the threat assessment, while anti-drone technology and police-operated drones will be in use for aerial surveillance, the DGP said, adding that anti-sabotage teams, bomb squads and dog squads are also in place. The 10,000 security personnel deployed for the festival comprises Odisha Police and eight companies of Central Armed Police Force (CAPF). To ensure foolproof security on sea front, arrangements have been made with deployment of Odisha's Marine Police, Coast Guard and Indian Navy, he said. A real-time chatbot application has also been launched to assist visitors with information on parking availability, route maps and directions to vacant parking spaces, Khurania said. Expecting congregation of around 15 lakh people on day one and two of the festival, DGP Khurania emphasised that priority will be given to proper service and security of the devotees. 'Extensive arrangements have been made for the orderly 'darshan' of the devotees. Experienced police officers have been deployed for Rath Yatra duty,' he said. The Director of Intelligence, R P Koche, said since Shri Jagannath temple is located in a high-security zone, its importance increases significantly during the Rath Yatra. Besides, special security arrangements have been made for Sri Gundicha temple and the three chariots, Koche said. The Additional Director General (ADG) of Police (Modernisation), Soumendra Priyadarshi, said appropriate arrangements have been made to control the crowd. ADG (Law and Order) Sanjay Kumar said the cooperation of the officers/staff of the police administration is essential for the orderly completion of the Rath Yatra. Shree Jagannath's Rath Yatra will begin on June 27 and end on July 8 with deities returning to the main shrine.
Hans India
2 hours ago
- Hans India
Tourists alerted on fake hotel websites
Bhubaneswar: Ahead of the annual Rath Yatra in Puri, the CID of Odisha Police on Wednesday issued an alert to tourists about fake hotel websites. The police also said it removed 11 such sites as hotel booking scams are on the rise in Odisha, especially in places like Puri, Bhubaneswar and Cuttack. Fraudsters create fake websites and social media pages that look genuine, offering cheap rates, urgent deals and guaranteed bookings, the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) said in a statement. The CID said the fake websites demand full payment and use fake customer care phone numbers and receipts to lure tourists. This is their modus operandi, it said. 'Many of these fake sites appear at the top of online search results, making them hard to identify and the victims often realise the scam only after reaching the destination,' it said. The police have received 317 complaints through the cyber crime helpline number 1930, along with alerts from government bodies, hotel owners and the general public regarding fake websites offering fraudulent hotel deals. Acting upon the complaints, the CID officers immediately removed 11 fake hotel booking websites. The social media team of the Crime Branch in Odisha is actively and continuously monitoring online platforms to detect and take down such fake sites, the statement said. Ensuring a safe and scam-free experience for all during this sacred festival remains a top priority, it said. 'Our team is actively keeping an eye on any fake hotel websites, and it is taking quick action to remove those as soon as they come to its notice,' the CID statement said. The police have advised citizens to book hotels only through verified platforms and genuine official websites. People have also been asked to cross-check the phone numbers of the hotels and their addresses by using Google maps and confirm their bookings by calling directly. Avoid making full advance payments, pay partially if possible and use secure payment gateways instead of direct UPI or wallet transfers, the CID statement said. Tourists have been advised to be cautious of unrealistically low-priced deals, especially near Puri during Rath Yatra. If anyone comes across fake hotel websites or suspicious listings, they can report it immediately to the cyber crime helpline at 1930.
Time of India
2 hours ago
- Time of India
SC pulls up UP jail dept for violating liberty of a person; orders to pay ' Rs 5 lakh to man detained for month despite bail
NEW DELHI: Lambasting the UP prisons department for illegally detaining a man for 28 days despite his release on bail, Supreme Court on Wednesday asked the state to pay an interim compensation of Rs 5 lakh to him and ordered a judicial inquiry into lapses on the part of Ghaziabad jail officials. Taking a hyper-technical approach - the bail order mentioned Section 5 instead of Section 5(1) of UP Prohibition of Unlawful Conversion of Religion Act and the same typo was repeated in the additional sessions and district judge's release order of May 27 - jail authorities had refused to release Aftab, who had converted to Hinduism to marry a Hindu girl. With the director general (prisons) logged on virtually to the proceedings and jail superintendent Sitaram Sharma present in the courtroom, a bench of Justices K V Viswanathan and N Kotiswar Singh said, "The whole incident to say the least is unfortunate. Each one of the stakeholders in the process was aware as to what the offence was, what the crime number was and the sections under which the man was charged with and the punishment section. " Noting that Aftab was released on Tuesday only after the SC took umbrage to denial of liberty based on a hyper-technicality, the bench said, "Aftab was sent on a spin and notwithstanding the order of the SC of April 29 (order of a bench headed by the CJI), and the release order of May 27 (by additional sessions and district judge), which is clear to us as daylight, the applicant has been released only on June 24. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like 경고: 이 게임 진짜 중독성 쩔어요. 지금 해봐! Hero Wars 플레이하기 Undo "Liberty is a very valuable and precious right guaranteed to a person under the Constitution. It cannot be martyred on these useless technicalities. We only hope that no other convict or undertrial is languishing in jail on account of similar technicalities. The DG (prisons) has assured us that no one will suffer because of such technicality in future and that he will sensitise the entire jail staff." The bench noted that UP prisons had 90,000 inmates. The SC asked the Ghaziabad district judge to complete the inquiry into the episode by Aug 18 and told the DG (prisons) to understand and implement the need to respect court orders and sensitise jail staff about the importance of liberty to ensure such incidents are not repeated. The bench said if it found from the inquiry that jail officials were at fault for delay in Aftab's release despite valid bail orders, it would impose cost on individual officers. It asked the UP govt to pay the compensation of Rs 5 lakh by Friday. UP's advocate general Garima Prasad informed the court that jail authorities had moved the trial court on May 28 for correction in the released order to include Section 5(1) of the anti-conversion law, but the trial court did so only on June 24, following which Aftab was released on Tuesday evening. The SC asked the state not to look for typographical errors in matters relating to liberty and said, "Otherwise, we (judges) in the SC will be doing proof-reading while most of the country will be behind bars."
