Special units have also been mobilised to ensure physical security
KATHMANDU, OCTOBER 17
Kathmandu Valley Police Office, Ranipokhari, has enforced an integrated security plan in Kathmandu valley, bearing in mind the potential criminal and unlawful activities during the festive season.
The security plan is being implemented by all three police ranges of Kathmandu, Lalitpur and Bhaktapur districts, and Kathmandu Valley Crime Investigation Office.
According to KVPO, the new security arrangements were put in place to make the security of the valley foolproof, dependable, reliable and sturdy throughout the period of Dashain, Tihar and Chhath. Security personnel will perform their duties in such a way that people feel the sense of security through preventive measures, while bringing to book the guilty inthe case of any untoward incidents reported in the responsibility areas of KVPO. A total of 5,833 personnel have been mobilised to implement the festival security plan.
Police personnel have fanned out to prevent and reduce road accidents. Snifferduce road accidents. S dogs; foot, cycle, motorcycle and vehicle patrol; seal and search, cordon and search; picketing, ambushing and surveillance; armed quick response team; cross-checking and scientific de-ployment of control room vehicles, among others, will be carried out as part of the crackdown on criminal activities, said KVPO.
It said that an extensive security plan had been chalked out to keep 'a hawk-eyed vigil' on suspects to prevent any untoward incident during thefestive season. All police employees have been directed to not stay on leave, except for bereavement and maternity till further notice to make the security plan effective. The cops, both in uniform and civvies, will be on duty with special focus on crowded are-as, marketplaces, departmental stores, marts, shopping malls, bus parks, solitary areas, banks and financial institutions to check crime and unethical trade practices, according to MPO.
Special units have also been mobilised to ensure physical security of govern-ment offices when they remain closed during the festival.
Police, in association with all three district administration offices of the valley, Department of Food Technology and Quality Control, Department of Commerce, Supplies and Consumer Protection,and consumer rights activists have also stepped up market monitoring to prevent black-marketing, hoarding and profiteering.
Police officials have warned unregistered organisa-tions and clubs against running illegal lottery schemes without prior approval of the concerned DAO in the name of the festival. The DAO has imposed a ban on raffle and lottery schemes. Similarly, more than 2000 places in the valley are under surveillance of CCTV cameras. Police willalso keep vigil on residential areas to prevent potential burglaries in unattended houses during the festive season when a section of the migrant workers, students and civil servants living in the valley go to their hometowns to celebrate Dashain.
Meanwhile, Metropolitan Traffic Police Division has put in place a separate security arrangement to prevent road accidents during Dashain, Tihar and Chhath when more people are in rush. Traffic cops, both in uniform and civvies, equipped with breathalysers, were deployed in all transits to Kathmandu Valley, including Thankot, Nagdhunga, Pharping, Jagati and Balaju, to catch anyone driving under the influence.
Traffic police have been conducting regular and surprise alcohol metre test on drivers, with major focus on longroute buses.
A version of this article appears in the print on October 18, 2023, of The Himalayan Times
