Elaborate security arrangements for Ganesha procession in Shivamogga

The immersion procession of the Ganesha idol installed by the Hindu Mahasabha will be taken out in the city on Friday, under tight security cover arranged by the district administration and police.

The event, which draws large crowds from the city and outside every year, has once again turned the spotlight on Shivamogga, with elaborate arrangements and a display of devotional and artistic fervour visible across several localities. The day-long procession, which draws massive crowds, carries added significance in the context of past instances that triggered communal tension and a spate of law-and-order cases in the city.

The procession will begin at Bheemeshwara Temple and pass through S.P.M. Road, Ramanna Shreshti Park, Gandhi Bazar Main Road, S.N. Circle, A.A. Circle, Nehru Road, Gopi Circle, Durgigudi, Jail Circle, Shivamurthy Circle, Mahaveer Circle, D.V.S. Circle, Convent Road, and Kote Road before the idol is immersed in the Tunga River near Bheemeshwara Temple.

At a press conference held in Shivamogga on Thursday, the organising committee detailed the arrangements for the event. Speaking to reporters, Shivamogga MLA S.N. Channabasappa said the Hindu Mahasabha has been installing the Ganesha idol to mark the festival for the past 82 years.

Holiday

He said several traffic circles across the city had been decorated with artistic displays depicting Hindu mythological and historical figures, and that various youth and pro-Hindu organisations had made preparations to ensure the procession passed off peacefully. Some organisations, he added, would distribute juice, sweets, and prasad to devotees taking part.

Deputy Commissioner Prabhulinga Kavilakatti has issued a notification on traffic management for the day, diverting vehicles entering and leaving the city and banning parking and vehicular movement along the entire procession route for the duration of the event. In view of the scale of the celebrations, several schools in the city have declared a holiday for Friday.

Briefing the media on the security arrangements, Shivamogga Superintendent of Police B. Nikhil said the event would be closely monitored through a large deployment of personnel, comprising over 4,500 police personnel. They include five officers of the rank of SP/Additional SP, 22 Deputy SPs, 164 inspectors, around 300 police sub-inspectors, and nearly 4,000 police staff and home guards.

He said 12 platoons of the Karnataka State Reserve Police (KSRP) and 10 District Armed Reserve platoons would be deployed, along with quick response teams, two companies of Rapid Action Force. Seven fire units and four ambulance teams will also be stationed along the route, he said, with the entire event kept under watch through CCTV cameras and mobile camera units.

The SP added that, as a precautionary measure, the police had already registered nearly 900 preventive cases and externed around 35 persons.