Pune police put in place code of conduct for Ganeshotsav

The Pune police have put in place code of conduct for 10-day Ganpati festival, which stated on Saturday. The guidelines have been issued for mandals as well as citizens to avoid crowding and curb the spread of Covid-19.

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As per the code of conduct, police have banned any procession while mandals have been barred from erecting mandaps and devotees have been allowed to take darshan online.

“This year as code of conduct has come into place, there will be no procession or in-person darshan. To ensure that nobody violates the rules, we will deploy SRPF, BDDS, QRT. There won’t be any outside assistance from the state,” said joint commissioner of police Ravindra Shisve.

The police have also urged the citizens of Pune to follow the home immersion norms this year, as against the public immersion in artificial ponds and Mula-Mutha rivers that unfolds on a massive scale annually. Pune has around 4,75,000 Ganpati idols installed across the city on an average, according to the police.

Pune mayor Murlidhar Mayor has also appealed to citizens to avoid celebrations in the light of the Covid19 pandemic.

The 10-day festival will end on August 31. As an annual practice on the last day, which attracts crowds of around 25,00,000 people, the city administration builds special immersion ponds at popular immersions spots. However, this year, the service will not be provided, according to the mayor.

For the immersion day, 7,700 police officials will be on the streets, according to joint commissioner Shisve. While 7,000 will be staff members, 700 officers will also be on the streets to prevent crowding.

Usually, most of the 9,000-strong police strength along with additional reinforcements, are deployed on the streets on immersion day to manage crowds. However, the deployment numbers have reduced due to the stress on home immersion.