Amid elaborate security arrangements Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressed a large gathering of people on the Parade Ground here on Tuesday. The police had set up barricading outside the Parade Ground, near GTC helipad and near the Dehradun airport along with the deployment of substantial security arrangement. The public started reaching the Parade Ground for the prime minister’s speech at about 10 am, hours before the scheduled time of his public address. The ground was packed with eager citizens by the time when the prime minister started his speech and people appeared to remained enrapt till the completion of his speech.
People arriving at the venue of the prime minister’s public address passed through police checking points and a three-tier security check before reaching the Parade Ground. With substantial deployment of police personnel, the visitors were frisked before being allowed on to the Parade Ground.
The administration had aimed to facilitate fool-proof security for the prime minister’s public address on Parade Ground. The stage from where the PM was to address the crowd was sealed with armed police personnel securing the site. Apart from the police deployment on and around the Parade Ground, police forces in considerable numbers had been deployed at the Dehradun airport and GTC helipad. The police also maintained a vigil and conducted checks in various important locations apart from the Parade Ground. A bomb disposal squad, jammer and dog squad were put into operation too to make the security fool-proof.
Earlier on Tuesday, the SPG personnel and the senior administrative and police officers had inspected these areas to check security arrangements. The police had sealed the Parade Ground a day earlier on Monday, declaring it a zero-zone and deploying forces to secure the area with no one from the general public being allowed to enter the ground. A total of 250 police officers including superintendents of police, additional superintendents of police, deputy superintendents of police, inspectors, sub-inspectors and women sub-inspectors were deployed for the PM’s visit apart from 2000 police personnel - head constables, constables, women constables, PAC jawans, traffic inspectors, traffic head constables, constables and inspectors of armed police were deployed for the security. Dehradun superintendent of police Ajay Singh said that with elaborate security arrangement made around Parade Ground, Dehradun airport and GTC helipad, the prime minister’s visit was held successfully.