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Lungs of Kolkata turn into virtual fortress ahead of Mamata Banerjee’s ‘United India’ rally
About 20 leaders of parties opposed to Bharatiya Janata Party and Prime Minister Narendra Modi, including one former prime minister, are supposed to be present at the Brigade Parade Ground on Satuday afternoon.
As Trinamool Congress geared up to host the mother of all gatherings in Kolkata, the authorities turned the meeting venue at Brigade Parade ground and adjacent areas, considered the “lungs of the city” into a virtual fortress.
About 20 leaders of parties opposed to Bharatiya Janata Party and Prime Minister Narendra Modi, including one former prime minister and three chief ministers, are supposed to be present at the Brigade Parade Ground on Satuday afternoon.
From Friday, the grounds were out of bounds for the common people. Kolkata Police bomb squad personnel and dog-squads periodically examined the venue that has the iconic Victoria Memorial Hall in the backdrop.
About 8,500 policemen will be deployed for security at the venue.
A Kolkata Police statement said the meeting venue had been divided in 22 zones. A team consisting of both men in uniform and plain clothes headed by an officer of the rank of deputy commissioner will be in charge of each zone.
The overall supervision will be done by five senior officers, two additional commissioners and three joint commissioners.
“The commissioner will be in charge of overall supervision from the control room of the city police headquarters,” said a senior official of Kolkata Police, who did not wish to be named.
Five watchtowers, each 35 feet high, have been erected at different locations on the grounds. Drones will also be used for surveillance.
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Trinamool Congress secretary general Partha Chatterjee said there will be five stages for the rally. “The main stage will be occupied by the chief minister, party MP Abhishek Banerjee (chief minister’s nephew) and the invited leaders from different parties,” he said.
One stage will be reserved for the ministers of Bengal and one more for persons from the cultural world. The remaining two stages will be reserved for party MPs and MLAs.
State food & supplies minister, Jyoti Priya Mullick said that 5,000 volunteers of Trinamool Congress will be assisting the police in all the 22 zones that the meeting venue has been divided into.
“For the sake of those who will not be able to enter the meeting venue, 20 giant LED screens and 1,000 loudspeakers will be put up at the venue, so that all can hear what the different leaders will say,” Mullick said
The roads adjacent to the meeting venue will be declared as “no parking zone” from 8 AM to 8 PM on Saturday and traffic movement will be restricted in some other streets.
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Senior officials of the Kolkata Police, including the city police commissioner, Rajeev Kumar took turns in visiting the meeting venue to monitor and supervise the security arrangements.
Trinamool supporters have been converging in the city from different districts since Thursday. They were accommodated in temporary shelters at Central Park in Salt Lake and Gitanjali Stadium in Kasba.
Giant kitchens were set up to cook for the supporters.
