More than 10 lakh devotees visited seven major Shaktipeeths and temples of Himachal Pradesh during Shardiya Navratri. A total of 10,25,726 devotees visited temples during the nine-day Navratri festival from October 11 to 19, while 1,04,520 vehicular movement was recorded during the period. In terms of number of devotees, Shri Naina Devi Temple stood first, where more than 3.95 lakh people paid obeisance.
Amidst this movement of devotees in the major religious places of the state, the police and the district administration were faced with the challenge of maintaining crowd control, traffic management and parking system. Due to narrow access roads and limited parking facilities to many temples located in hilly areas, special attention had to be paid to the arrangements. According to the data, Shri Naina Devi Temple had the largest share in the total number of devotees who reached the seven temples. After this, maximum number of devotees reached Shri Jwalamukhi and Shri Chintpurni temple.
Most devotees in Naina Devi
So many devotees recorded in seven major temples during Navratri
- Naina Devi: 3,95,226
- Volcano: 1,80,000
- Chintpurni: 1,39,000
- Bala Sundari Ji, Trilokpur: 1,06,600
- Chamunda Devi ji: 70,500
- Brajeshwari Devi Ji: 69,400
- Baglamukhi ji: 65,000
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Challenge from crowd control to parking
During Navratri, police made arrangements for crowd control, queue management, traffic management and parking of vehicles in and around the temple premises. The district administration, temple trusts, home guards and other concerned agencies also participated in the arrangements along with police personnel deployed at various places. In view of the large number of devotees, police personnel had to remain on duty for a long time.
Along with administrative coordination and traffic management, ensuring the safety of the devotees was also an important part of the system. Chief Minister Sukhwinder Singh Sukhu has praised the state police for handling the arrangements during Navratri. Director General of Police Ashok Tiwari also praised the efforts of the Superintendents of Police, supervisory officers and police personnel on duty of the respective districts.
In case of emergency contact 112
Police have appealed to the citizens and tourists visiting the state to use the Emergency Response Support System (ERSS)-112 in case of emergency. This helpline is available round the clock for emergency assistance like police, fire or ambulance. Chief Minister Sukhwinder Singh Sukhu congratulated the state police for ensuring safe and smooth darshan arrangements for 10,25,726 devotees in seven major temples during Navratri. Praising the devotion and professional efficiency of the police personnel, he said that it is an important responsibility of the government to ensure the safety and convenience of lakhs of devotees. The Chief Minister also appreciated the coordination between the police, district administration, temple trusts, home guards and other agencies. He expressed gratitude for the cooperation of the temple management, volunteers, local residents and devotees.