The law enforcement is getting hi-tech this Friday with the use of aerial drones, surveillance cameras, and plain-clothes officers to police Attukal Pongala.
Anticipating a massive inflow of devotees from Thursday and a large number of devotees spending the night in the vast festival area that falls within an 8-km radius of the temple, police have taken extra care. Hundreds would pitch camps on roadsides and pavements and they will need additional security.
P. Prakash, Trivandrum City Police Commissioner said the police faced a huge task to ensure security. He also said that more then 4,200 officers (mostly women officers) would be deployed in two shifts from Thursday to maintain law and order, regulate traffic, and ensure public safety.
The police have also deployed a fleet of ambulances and secured an emergency routes to to hospitals.
Fire Precautions
The police have asked major hospitals in the district to prepare themselves to admit mass casualties in case of emergencies. The law enforcement has also deployed fire engines at several places with a wireless set to quickly respond to fire outbreaks. It has also banned devotees from offering Pongala near fuel depots and warehouses storing flammable materials.
A surveillance drone.
Quick Reaction Team
Women police commandos has been deployed inside the temple premesis and a platoon of ‘Thunderbolts,’ the Special Weapons and Tactics Team (SWAT) to support them in case of emergencies.
In order to prevent any trouble, the police have also affixed the photographs of persons, including women, arrested on charges of child lifting, pick-pocketing, and chain snatching in the Attukal area in the past five years (including those from neighbouring states).
