New Year celebrations: B’luru Police issue guidelines with special focus on women
Bengaluru: The Bengaluru Police Department on Monday issued detailed guidelines for New Year celebrations in the city, with special focus on the safety of women and young adults.
Addressing a press conference here, Bengaluru Police Commissioner Seemanth Kumar Singh said the city police had put in place comprehensive security arrangements as Bengaluru prepares to welcome the New Year.
He said security measures have already been initiated in Central Business District (CBD) areas, including MG Road, Koramangala, Indiranagar, Electronic City and other mall zones, which are expected to witness heavy footfall during New Year’s Eve celebrations.
The Police Commissioner stressed that public peace should not be disturbed under any circumstances and warned that strict legal action would be initiated against those attempting to create law and order problems. He said hotels, pubs, clubs and resorts would be allowed to operate only within prescribed time limits on New Year’s Day. Permission for DJ music and the use of loudspeakers has been granted with specific time restrictions.
Singh further said traffic movement on MG Road would be restricted from 10 pm on December 31.
Warning against nuisance in an inebriated state, he said strict action would be taken against offenders and pubs could be closed if verbal duels or altercations are reported. AI-enabled cameras will be deployed at key locations to prevent untoward incidents, he added.
The Police Commissioner said that arrangements have been made to ensure safe travel for people after midnight. Additional BMTC bus services will operate across the city, and discussions have been held with operators of tempo travellers to address the expected shortage of cabs and auto-rickshaws during late hours.
He said sufficient buses would be deployed from locations witnessing large gatherings, noting that such an arrangement was being implemented for the first time.
He said around 20,000 personnel will be deployed on New Year’s Day.
The deployment will include four police control rooms, 78 watch towers, 164 women help desks, 46 “umbrellas” or visual safe zones equipped to handle weather contingencies, 55 ambulances, 37 fire tenders, 10,122 civil police personnel, 2,436 traffic police personnel, 88 Karnataka State Reserve Police (KSRP) platoons comprising 1,936 personnel, 21 platoons of City Armed Reserve (CAR) with 168 personnel, 3,341 home guards, 916 civil defence personnel, 400 traffic wardens, four C-SWAT teams, three Quick Response Teams, two water jets, 246 Hoysala patrolling vehicles and 249 Cobra patrolling teams.
Singh said traffic diversions would be in place from 9 pm onwards on MG Road and Queens Road, with commuters required to use alternate routes through the Halasuru area. He also said that vehicular entry on 50 flyovers would not be permitted after 10 pm on December 31.
He added that watch towers would be deployed at strategic locations for enhanced surveillance and women help desks would assist citizens and facilitate reporting of grievances.
Metro timings have been optimised to manage crowd flow and reduce congestion. He warned that nuisance at pubs would be dealt with immediately and operations could be halted at the concerned premises if required.
The Police Commissioner advised the public to use designated transit points if intoxicated and urged cooperation with security personnel during checks and inspections. He said exclusive meetings have been held with security personnel and bouncers to ensure smooth coordination.
Meanwhile, popular tourist destinations around Bengaluru, including Nandi Hills, will remain closed from December 31 till January 1. Tourist spots in the hilly Chikkamagaluru district have also been shut, with restrictions in force from 6 pm on December 31 till the morning of January 1.