Agartala, Oct 20 (Representative) Thousands of Pandal hoppers throng the streets in all major towns of Tripura, including Agartala, on Thursday night, a day before the formal beginning of the four-day Durga puja, amidst the rush for pre-puja shopping. The Indian Meteorological Department has predicted dry and comfortable weather during Durga Puja. As many as 2865 Durga pujas, including around 500 in the capital city, are being held this year in Tripura, which is more than 15 percent of the previous year. Besides police, about 4000 Tripura State Rifles (TSR) jawans, civil defense volunteers, and civil police personnel were engaged in Agartala to maintain general law and order and traffic movement during Durga puja, said Assistant Inspector General of Police (Law and Order) Jyotishman Das Chaudhury. He said Tripura police have already started taking preventive actions against anti-social elements and drug users, checking vulnerable places, and conducting special drives for traffic enforcement in view of Durga puja.
To manage the crowds mainly in the cities, traffic restrictions have been imposed for a specific duration starting Friday evening. Although there is no specific threat and no alert has been issued by the Ministry of Home Affairs, the state police have left no stone unturned to ensure peaceful celebrations of Durga Puja. Altogether, hundreds of police assistance booths were set up besides watch towers in all critical locations in the city, he pointed out. Das Chaudhury said police will continue an anti-narcotic special drive that will also intensify in the coming days, especially during the celebration of festivities. So far, there has been no report of any extremist movement in the state; however, police are maintaining strict vigil inside the state’s territory, and BSF has been asked to maintain strict vigil on the Indo-Bangladesh border.
Like previous years, this time Agartala was illuminated with colorful lighting for the last three days, and the city witnessed a massive crowd on Thursday night, although most of the puja organisers were busy finishing the pandals and idols. Children, youths, and even elders were seen taking selfies in front of the idols and pandals. The SP (West), Dr Kiran Kumar K informed that the sensitive and important places where footfalls are expected to be more will be kept under CCTV surveillance. Hundreds of CCTV cameras were installed across the state, excluding the available CCTV cameras installed in Agartala under the Smart City project, including in some puja Pandals, all major motor stands, and parking areas. “The organisers of puja committees, especially big pandals, have been requested to install CCTV cameras in and around their Pandals. The railway police have taken special care for the safety and security of the puja revelers across all railway stations, and CRPF have been deployed in major police station areas,” he stated.