Kathmandu, October 29:

Police have formed special vigilance teams in the Valley in a bid to prevents incidents of crime during the Tihar festival.

According to chief of the Metropolitan Police Range Hanumandhoka Superintendent Sarvendra Khanal, some 16 groups, with six to seven police personnel each, would keep vigil at different parts of the Kathmandu district, including shopping complexes and financial institutions.

Special teams on plain clothes have also been deployed to contain gang fights and conflicts among the deusi-bhailo groups, especially during late hours. The teams would be on patrol throughout the night, he said.

“We have been persuading the deusi-bhailo groups to go home after after 11 pm, as per the government’s rule,” he said. Khanal conceded that the firecrackers have been widely in use despite the ban imposed in the Valley. He also said the police was ready to intervene if any groups tried to extort in the name of deusi-bhailo.

Police of Lalitpur and Bhaktapur districts have also made special security arrangement for Tihar.