Gujarat govt razes houses, over 150 huts to free Somnath temple land of encroachment
Gir Somnath (PTI): A mega anti-encroachment drive was undertaken to clear around 3 hectares of land behind Somnath temple in Gujarat's Gir Somnath district that belonged to the temple trust and state government, officials said on Saturday.
As many as 21 houses and 153 huts that had unauthorisedly come up were being demolished to clear the land belonging to Shree Somnath Trust, which manages the activities of the revered Somnath temple, and the state government, said Collector Harji Vadhvaniya.
The mega demolition drive began Saturday morning in the presence of five mamlatdars' and around 100 revenue officials, Vadhvaniya said. Heavy police presence was also maintained to ensure that it went off peacefully, he said.
The land, which measures 3 hectares (7.4 acres), will be cleared of encroachment and fenced as per a circular issued by the state revenue department, he said.
Somnath temple is located in Prabhas Patan near Veraval town along the coast of the Arabian Sea.
It is believed to be the first among the 12 jyotirlinga shrines of Lord Shiva and is an important pilgrim site and a tourist spot.
"We are working to remove unauthorised residential encroachment as per the circular issued by the revenue department and secure it with fencing. Before the exercise, we had called for a meeting with the representatives of the encroachers on January 25 to explain to them the entire process," the collector said.
He said that the administration has ensured the availability of tractors and labourers to help the encroachers remove their household items and arrangements have been made to provide them food packets.
"There was encroachment in two pockets 21 constructions on 700 square metres of land, and 153 constructions on 3 hectares of land," he told media persons.
Gir Somnath district Superintendent of Police Manoharsinh Jadeja said that a large number of policemen have been deployed to ensure that the drive goes smoothly.
The drive is expected to be completed by the evening, officials said.
"The land belongs to the government and temple trust. Two SRP (State Reserve Police) companies and 500 police personnel are deployed here. We have sealed the entry and exit of the area. To meet emergencies, firefighters, teams of Rapid Action Force (RAF) and Quick Response Team (QRT) have been kept on standby," he said.
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Strict security measures in place in Mumbai for Messi's events at 2 venues Dec 14, say police
Mumbai (PTI): In view of Argentine superstar footballer Lionel Messi's visit to Mumbai on Sunday, the city police are implementing stringent security measures, like not allowing water bottles, metals, coins inside the stadiums and setting up watchtowers to keep an eye on the crowd, officials said.
The police also said taking extra care to avoid any stampede-like situation and to prevent recurrence of the chaotic situation that unfolded in Kolkata during Messi's visit on Saturday as thousands of fans protested inside the Salt Lake stadium here after failing to catch a clear glimpse of the football icon despite paying hefty sums for tickets.
Messi is expected to be present at the Cricket Club of India (Brabourne Stadium) in Mumbai on Sunday for a Padel GOAT Cup event followed by attending a celebrity football match. He is expected to proceed to the Wankhede Stadium for the GOAT India Tour main event around 5 pm.
"In view of Lionel Messi's visit to Mumbai, the police are geared up and have put in place a high level of security arrangements in and around the stadiums located in south Mumbai. Considering the chaos that prevailed in Kolkata and the security breach, we have deployed World Cup-level security arrangements at Brabourne and Wankhede stadiums," an official said.
Expecting heavy crowd near the stadiums during Messi's visit, the city police force has deployed more than 2,000 of its personnel near and around both the venues, he said.
As the Mumbai police have the experience of security 'bandobast' during the victory parade of ICC World Cup-winning Indian team and World Cup final match at the Wankhede Stadium, in which over one lakh cricket fans had gathered, we are prepared to handle a large crowd of fans, he said.
"We are trying to avoid the errors that occurred in the past," the official said.
There is no place to sneak inside the stadiums in Mumbai like the Kolkata stadium, according to him.
The police are also asking the organisers to provide all the required facilities to the fans inside the stadium, so that there will be no chaos, he said, adding the spectators have purchased tickets in the range of Rs 5,000 to 25,000. After paying so much of amount, any spectator expects proper services, while enjoying the event, he said.
The police are expecting 33,000 spectators at the Wankhede Stadium and over 4,000 at Brabourne Stadium. Besides this, more than 30,000 people are expected outside and around the stadiums just to have a glimpse of the football sensation, he said.
The organisers responsible for Messi's India visit recently came to Mumbai to discuss security arrangements. During the meeting, the Mumbai police asked them not to take the event lightly, according to the official.
After those requirements were fulfilled, the final security deployment was chalked out, he said.
Police has the standard procedure of the security arrangements inside the Wankhede Stadium, where people are barred from taking water bottles, metals objects, coins. Police are setting up watch towers near the stadiums and there will be traffic diversions, so that there is maximum space available to stand, according to the official.
Police are also appealing to the spectators to use public transport service for commuting and avoid personal vehicles to reach south Mumbai.
To avoid any stampede-like situation, police are also taking precautionary measures and will stop the fans some distance ahead of the stadium and public announcement systems will be used to guide the crowd. Barricades will be placed at various places to manage the crowd.
In case the crowd swells up beyond expectation, the police will divert people to other grounds and preparations in this regard underway, he said.
Additional police force has been deployed in south Mumbai to tackle any kind of situation, he said.
