Open drinking, poor lighting spark safety concerns in Sector 29 despite heavy police deployment

During a spotcheck by HT on late Wednesday night, the team observed heavy crowd outside several clubs and pubs, which displayed boards saying they would remain open until 6.00am.

Sector 29 witnessed open drinking and illegal parking despite heavy police deployment on Wednesday night.

People seen drinking liquor openly on New year’s Eve in Gurugram. (HT)

There was a massive footfall of people coming from Gurugram and other parts of Delhi-NCR to celebrate New Year. During a spotcheck by HT on late Wednesday night, the team observed heavy crowd outside several clubs and pubs, which displayed boards saying they would remain open until 6.00am.

At the central ground, many people were seen drinking openly, dancing to dhol beats and recording videos, while police patrolling teams did not intervene.

Dheeraj Saxena, a Gurugram resident, said, “The entire area was in chaos, with drunk people roaming around and shouting. Many were consuming alcohol like they were drinking water from the bottles. This created an unsafe environment even in the presence of the police. I was with my wife and child, so we decided to go elsewhere to celebrate.”

Riya Tiwari, who came with her friends from Delhi, shared that they came to Gurugram since most of the places here are open overnight. “After stepping out of the restaurant, we felt really unsafe. Although the police officials were constantly patrolling, you still feel these eyes on you, which makes you uncomfortable,” she said.

“At one section, which was the main entry and exit point, the streetlights were not working. Even though we were a group of five, we felt very uncomfortable,” she added.

Rakesh, a club staffer, said the club maintains proper security. “We have 3-4 bouncers to keep out anti-social elements and ensure safety inside,” he said.

Meanwhile, heavy barricading at the area’s entry and exit points led to widespread illegal parking outside the nearby Leisure Valley Park. Limited designated parking spaces were already full, forcing many to park on pavements.

On Monday, police directed commuters planning to visit Sector 29 and nearby areas to park at designated spots at Leisure Valley park, HUDA Gymkhana, the Machan and taxi parking lots, other than one identified temporary parking in front of a private hotel in the vicinity. However, large crowd gatherings at the park and Club Street led to visitors occupying the footpath on both sides of Leisure Valley Road, which had poor visibility due to non-functional or partially lit streetlights on a 250-metre-long stretch towards the venue.

Many youngsters were lying on the sides of the roads at around 1.30am on Thursday.

Police had deployed ambulances and emergency response vehicles (ERVs), which were seen patrolling the entire market area. “Around 200 police officers had come in at 3.30pm on Thursday to ensure safe and hassle-free celebrations,” said assistant commissioner of police (East) Amit Bhatia.

Three Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) teams were deployed at strategically identified locations inside the market area to prevent any untoward incident. “No major incidents or scuffles broke out during the night, however, some miscreant elements who tried to intrude into the crowds were identified and disciplined,” ACP said.

Police officials said the celebrations largely remained peaceful and three to four personnel were deployed inside the pubs and bars for vigilance.

In Haryana, restrictions on open/public drinking and pub or bar operating timings flow mainly from the Punjab Excise Act, 1914 (as applicable to Haryana) and the Haryana State Excise Policy issued annually. It states that consumption of alcohol in public places not covered by a valid excise licence is an offence under the Excise Act and attracts fines and possible prosecution.