Kolhapur administration on alert as Navratri rolls on

KOLHAPUR: The Kolhapur district administration is on its toes managing the Navratri crowd rush at the Mahalaxmi temple, following the death of one person in a stampede outside the Tuljapur Devi temple in Osmanabad on Saturday.
The nine-day festival began with the ghatasthapana ritual at the Mahalaxmi temple. Thousands flocked to the temple on Saturday morning to pray.
District administration officials emphasised that all measures have been taken to thwart any untoward incident in the temple. The police have been alerted to tighten security at the temple.
This Navratri, the district administration expects 15 lakh devotees visiting the Kolhapur temple. In 2013, over 13 lakh devotees had visited the temple. Devotees are allowed to enter the temple through all four entrances: the eastern darwaja, Ghati darwaja, Vidyapeeth darwaja and Mahadwar darwaja and can use three gates of the temple as exits, except the eastern darwaja.
"We have taken all precautions to avoid any situation that could lead to an accident similar to the Tuljapur temple incident. Devotees have been requested to park their vehicles only at the parking lots designated by the administration. Policemen are on constant duty; with assistance from the temple authorities, we will be able to manage the crowd at the temple," Kolhapur deputy superintendent of police V T Pawar told TOI on Saturday.
Pawar pointed out that women have been requested not to wear gold ornaments and visit the temple as a precautionary measure against chain-snatchings. "Devotees have been asked to report any suspicious bag to the nearest police help centre and avoid touching these, since these could be bombs or any explosive," said Pawar.
The police have also requested devotees not to use plastic and dispose off glasses, cups and bottles only in dustbins. Devotees have been asked not to carry mobile phones, cameras and laptops in the temple premises. These can be stored in lockers made available by the temple authority near the shoe stand, officials added. Mobile phone jammers have been installed in the temple premises as well. The district administration has appealed devotees to leave the premises as soon as their darshan of the goddess is done, which will help the administration manage the crowd efficiently.
Display boards have been installed at all seven entrances to Kolhapur city indicating the distance and directions to reach the Mahalaxmi temple.
"We have set up a public address system in the temple premises to offer instructions to devotees. We are in touch with the police and we appeal devotees to take police assistance in case of any emergency," said resident deputy collector Sanjay Pawar, also the secretary of the Paschim Maharashtra Devasthan Samiti (PMDS), the committee responsible for the Mahalaxmi temple's management.
The district administration has also installed two mobile toilets near the Juna Rajwada police station and the Rajaram High School.