Surat police ensure peaceful Ganesha Visharjan with hi-tech surveillance

Surat : As the vibrant city of Surat gears up for the grand Ganesha Visharjan festival, the Surat City Police are leaving no stone unturned to ensure that the festivities pass off peacefully without any untoward incidents.

This year, the city is set to immerse around 80,000 big and small Ganesha idols into the water, and to maintain order and security, approximately 15,000 policemen, including Friends of Police (FOPs), have been deployed along the Ganesha yatra routes throughout the city and at the immersion points.

In a remarkable move towards modernizing security measures, the Surat Police are harnessing cutting-edge technologies such as body-worn cameras and drone surveillance in crowded areas, including sensitive ones, to maintain a round-the-clock vigil on the activities and movements of the revelers.

Surat Police Commissioner, Ajay Tomar, emphasized that comprehensive preparations have been made to ensure the smooth conduct of the Ganesha Visharjan festival. Different routes have been meticulously planned across all zones of the city to facilitate the seamless procession of idols, some of which stand taller than 13 feet. To further enhance the flow of the processions, Surat Metro barricades along the route from the old RTO office in Majura Gate to Chowpaty Garden in Athwalines have been relocated, creating more open paths.

In an effort to maintain the solemnity of the occasion, organizers of Ganesha pandals have been prohibited from using DJ systems or loudspeakers during the Ganesha Visharjan Yatra.

The security apparatus for the festival is nothing short of impressive. Police Commissioner Tomar outlined the extensive deployment of officers and personnel involved in securing the city.

This includes officers from various ranks such as Joint CPs, Additional CPs, DCPs, ACPs, TRB, Home Guard, and even Friends of Police from both Surat and outside districts. The sheer numbers are staggering, with a total of 4214 police personnel, 5533 Home Guards, 12 companies of SRP (State Reserve Police), and even one company from the Border Security Force (BSF) being mobilized for this special operation. Additionally, more than 3,000 Friends of Police will be stationed across different parts of the city to assist in maintaining order.

To bolster surveillance capabilities, the Surat Police will employ drone cameras in congested and sensitive areas, including Limbayat and Chowk Bazar. In tandem with these airborne eyes, over 10,000 CCTV cameras installed throughout the city will closely monitor the roads. Furthermore, police officers will don body-worn cameras to ensure transparency and accountability in their actions.

In a novel move, the Surat Police will employ a special GPS tracker system to monitor the large Ganesha idols as they are immersed in the sea from the designated points at Magdalla, Dumas, and Hazira.