Bhubaneswar: Huge number of devotees are expected to throng Lingaraj Temple in Odisha capital on Saturday with Maha Shivratri being celebrated without any COVID restriction after a gap of almost two years in the state.
To ensure smooth conduct of the festival and hassle-free darshan of the deity, 32 platoons of police force will be deployed in and around the 11th-century shrine and a control room will be set up for proper coordination among the teams, DCP Bhubaneswar Prateek Singh said on Friday.
“A total of 5 additional SPs, 11 ACPs, 19 inspectors, and around 80 SIs & ASIs will be engaged for Maha Shivratri in the city. Parking lots have been set up at 16 locations with CCTV surveillance to monitor the movement of people as well as snatchers and thieves,” he said.
The DCP also informed about barricading in all four directions and restrictions on vehicular movement with one-way traffic diversion in and around the temple during the festival. “Arrangements have also been made for drinking water, keeping shoes and maintaining queue,” he added.
Policemen in plain clothes will patrol the area to keep an eye on anti-social elements. There will be watchers, QRT, SOG, district police and other emergency teams, besides firefighters.
Apart from Lingaraj Temple, police arrangements have been made in temples in 10 other police station limits, Singh added.
Notably, the ‘Mahadeepa’ of Lord Lingaraj will be lifted atop Dadhinauti (crown) of the shrine at 10 pm, marking an end to the day-long fasting of devotees.
More than 30 singers, including Babul Supriyo, Anuradha Paudwal and Bela Sulke, will perform at Bhajan Samaroh to be organised in front of Lingaraj Temple here on the auspicious occasion. Odia singers from across the state will also perform on the stage.
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