Disaster management department of Bokaro district issued a set of guidelines for organisers at Durga Puja pandals and on crowd management during the festival.
The first guideline is on regulating the traffic in the areas surrounding the pandals. For pedestrians, route maps for reaching the venue and information on emergency exit routes should be put up at strategic points. Putting up barricades and encouraging people to move in a queue is also important. There must be separate arrangements of male and female devotees inside the pandals.
All puja committees were asked that they must to make fireproof arrangements, they must have to install fire extinguishers, make available water and sand arrangements along with Carbon dioxide container and dry chemical powder besides emergency exits in pandals in a bid to avoid any untoward incidents like electrical disaster or fire, stated into instruction issued.
Nylon and synthetic cloths must not be used in construction or decoration of pandals. In case of any fire accident, the situation could become dangerous therefore organizers are warned to watch out and help prevent any accident from occurring.
There should be ample water arrangement inside and outside the pandal to avert fire that breaks out from spreading, he said. Fire-retardant materials must be used in the preparation of pandals. Electrical wires must be spreader in concealed PVC pipelines. Each and every puja pandals must have their separate fuse and circuit breakers, said an official of fire an safety department.
At least three entry and exit point are essential in each and every pandal and it should be spacious. The entry and exit gate must have a minimum width of 5 meters. As a precautionary measure the department has asked the committee members to widen the entry gates and provide emergency exits, he said. In case of a stampede, people are advised to stay alert and move towards open spaces.
An ambulance and trained healthcare professionals should be available round-the-clock at the venues, order reveals. The instruction also stated that, utilities such as clean and disinfected drinking water and adequate lighting arrangement should be provided along with CCTV camera in Puja Pandals; sufficient nos. of bins or containers are to be provided to avoid littering of food and other wastes.
These bins or containers wherever placed shall be cleared before they start overflowing.Besides that, SP Bokaro P Murugun also instructed to keep the vehicle away from Puja Pandals as far as practicable. SP also asked all puja committee to appoint volunteers in large number in a dress code along with Id cards. Police will decide the statue immersion place, dates and routes; Immersion processions must follow its prescribed route, said SP.
The district police Bokaro will use electronic surveillance, continuous aerial vigil to put the city under foolproof security cover during this Durga Puja. Installation of CCTV cameras at all puja pandals is essential, said SP.
"Unmanned-aerial vehicles (drone cameras) and more than 30 CCTV cameras will be used to conduct surveillance on various puja spots across the city, he said. “Drone cameras will help us in keeping a close watch on the movement of people, besides preventing stampedes or similar situations,” he added.
SP urged mass, please do not touch any abandoned or unclaimed object or toys. In case of any emergency please dial 100 or call to the control room on.
