30mn pilgrims expected for kanwar yatra, admin gears up
Heavy traffic will not be allowed on NH 58 and other major roads leading to Haridwar. Police will keep a tight vigil on the yatra route through CCTVs and drones.
MEERUT: Officials of Uttar Pradesh, along with those from four other states, have made elaborate security and other arrangements for the Kanwar Yatra, which will begin on July 22 and conclude on August 3 with the offering of ‘Gangajal’ by kanwariyas in temples of their respective native places on Shivratri, August 2.
More than three crore (30 million) Shiva devotees from West UP, Haryana, Rajasthan, Delhi, and Uttarakhand are expected to take part in the yatra this year. The officials have formed a comprehensive plan to ensure a safe and hassle-free yatra in their respective states and districts.
Lakhs of kanwariyas gather at the historic Kalipaltan temple in Meerut and Pura Mahadev temple in Bagpat district to offer Gangajal from their Kanwars on the day of Shivratri. The temple management and district administration have made elaborate security arrangements to ensure a peaceful and safe offering of Kanwar.
Traffic arrangements
Chief secretary Manoj Kumar Singh and DGP Prashant Kumar held a review meeting on July 6 with senior officials from 12 districts of western Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Haryana, Delhi, and Rajasthan and formulated a detailed plan for the yatra, with a prime focus on handling traffic.
Heavy traffic will not be allowed on NH 58 (between Delhi and Haridwar), the Delhi-Meerut Expressway, and other major roads leading to Haridwar.
SP (Traffic) Meerut, Raghvendra Mishra, said that the movement of light vehicles would also be stopped in phases. All kinds of vehicles, except those providing essential services, would be banned from July 27 onwards until August 3, a day after Shivratri, he said.
Security arrangements
An elaborate security plan has been formulated for the safety and security of kanwariyas. The entire yatra will be monitored through drones, and CCTV cameras are being placed along the route, which passes through Hardwar (Uttarakhand), Muzaffarnagar, Meerut, Ghaziabad, Bulandshahr, Bijnor, Moradabad, Amroha, Bagpat, Saharanpur, Shamli, and other districts of western UP.
Along with the local police, dog squads, bomb disposal squads, and staff from the intelligence bureau will be present along the yatra route. Two WhatsApp groups, with senior police officials as members, have been created to monitor the inflow of devotees and address any problems that arise.
The entire yatra has been divided into five zones, with special security arrangements made at the borders of Uttarakhand, Haryana, Rajasthan, and Delhi.
During the meeting with the chief secretary, it was decided to establish eight combined control rooms for Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand to monitor the influx of kanwariyas. “Control rooms will share the transit inflow of kanwariyas in their respective areas, which will help the officials of the concerned areas activate the resources and facilities to effectively supervise the crowd,” said ADG of Meerut Zone D K Thakur.
Facilities for devotees
No new camps will be allowed to be set up along the route, and operators with permission to set up camps have been directed to do so at a safe distance from the road with separate facilities for men and women.
Senior officials have directed the camps to arrange basic medication kits along with anti-venom in health camps to deal with cases of snake bites, as the yatra will be held during the rainy season. The health department has also been instructed to ensure the availability of mobile medical vans along the yatra route.
ID for devotees of other states
Identity cards have been made mandatory for devotees from other states so that, in case of emergency, their relatives and officials from their native places can be contacted. DGP Prashant Kumar said during the meeting that this measure would help ensure the safety and security of devotees from other states.
Guidelines for kanwariyas
It was decided in the meeting that kanwariyas won’t be allowed to carry tridents, javelins, or any kind of weapons. Meat and liquor shops along the route of the yatra will remain closed during the period of the yatra. There will be no restriction on carrying DJs for music, but the height should be within the prescribed limit. Police will also ensure that no DJ is played beyond the permissible decibel level of sound.
Repair of roads, electricity wires
The divisional commissioner of Meerut division, Selva Kumari J, said that the PWD department had been directed to make roads free from potholes and repair broken roads on the yatra route. However, many roads were still in need of repair, and devotees would have to walk through them. Meanwhile, a delegation of BJP leaders called on the chief engineer of the PWD on Monday to complain about the poor condition of roads on the Kanwar Yatra route. Ankit Choudhary, a former member of the party’s youth wing national executive, said, “The Kanwar Yatra, the biggest fair of faith, is about to begin. Lakhs of devotees will walk on these roads to reach their destinations. Despite the chief minister’s orders, many roads are still full of potholes, which could cause major incidents.”
MD of PVVNL, Isha Duhan, has also directed officials to cover transformers and electric poles with netting or plastic along the yatra route, repair loose wires, and provide temporary connections to Kanwar camps for electricity. Adequate lighting arrangements will also be made along the yatra route.