NEW DELHI: Security arrangements have been intensified across the national capital ahead of the weekend, with the Delhi Police installing additional layers of barricades at key locations and reinforcing them with heavy-duty chains to prevent attempts to breach security cordons, officials said on Saturday.
The move comes in the wake of the heated protest in Delhi by the Cockroach Janta Party, demanding reforms in the examination system and the resignation of Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan over the NEET paper leak, with police anticipating a larger turnout of protesters over the weekend.
According to police sources, multiple rows of iron barricades have been placed on sensitive areas in the New Delhi area, especially in and around the Jantar Mantar protest site and other strategic locations.
“Additional layers of barricades have been put in place at weak points, which have been bonded together and welded so that they cannot be easily dismantled or moved. Additional force will also be deployed to maintain law and order,” a police officer said.
Aside from physical barriers, surveillance and security measures have also been strengthened across the city.
The sources said that the police have intensified vigilance, and are scheduled to deploy heavily in the areas of New Delhi, central and north Delhi, where large gatherings or attempts to march towards the prohibited areas are expected.
Senior officers issued directions to all district police units to remain on high alert and ensure proper deployment in vulnerable locations. They said they were also asked to maintain updated lists of bad personalities, history spreaders and people with criminal backgrounds who could take advantage of the protest and create law and order problems.
A police source claimed that facial recognition systems installed around the protest venue have already identified more than 2,500 people with criminal backgrounds who entered the area over the past few days.
The system is used to alert field units whenever such individuals are discovered so that they can be discreetly monitored and subject to verification when necessary.
Anti-sabotage checks, intensified vehicle searches and enhanced patrolling at sensitive locations are also being implemented as part of the security plan, police said.
The authorities stressed that the detailed arrangements aim to ensure peaceful protests while preventing any untoward incident or breach of security during the expected peak over the weekend.
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