Security has been stepped up across Kolkata today for the Durga Puja festivities as revellers have already started making a beeline for popular pandals, police said.
A total of 17,000 police personnel, including 10,000 home guards, have been posted across the city and 400 pickets have been set up at various locations, while 58 PCR vans and 41 quick response teams have been deployed.
Kolkata Police Commissioner Vineet Goyal said the deployment will be in place till Vijaya Dashami and also during immersion of idols, including the carnival day, when colourful processions that are taken out by selected community pujas pass through the Red Road in the heart of the city.
"Full-fledged deployment has started from today, Chaturthi (fourth day) of the Durga Puja festivities, and this force will continuously be there till the end of the festival," Mr Goyal told reporters.
He said additional resources will be put in place in case there is more crowding than expected at any particular area during the festive days.
"Contingency plans are made in advance to cope with situations, be it rain or overcrowding," he said.
With the India Meteorological Department (IMD) predicting showers from Mahasaptami, which falls on October 2, people have already made plans to visit puja pandals before the rain goddess starts making its presence felt.
Revellers wearing new clothes have started making the rounds of popular puja marquees, many of which have already been inaugurated.
Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has inaugurated several Durga Puja pandals in the city over the last few days, including crowd-pullers such as Chetla Agrani, Sreebhumi Sporting Club, Suruchi Sangha and Bosepukur Sitala Mandir.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
Kolkata Woman Beheaded, Chopped Into 3 Pieces For Rejecting Brother-In-Law Bike-Taxi Rider Sends Explicit Photos To Doctor After She Cancels Ride In Kolkata Woman's Body Found In Live-In Partner's Flat In Kolkata: Cops Pakistan Tries To Arm-Twist China Over Gwadar Port. The Plan Backfires. Police Case Registered Against Rahul Gandhi For "Injuring" 2 BJP MPs Remittances To India As Much As Pak, Bangladesh Budgets Combined: 5 Facts What Happens In A US Government Shutdown? Gaza Rescuers Say Israel Strikes Kill 30 Pentagon's China Report Has A Startling Revelation About Its Nuclear Weapons Track Latest News Live on NDTV.com and get news updates from India and around the world.