BIRATNAGAR: With a view to containing criminal activities during the festive time of Dashain and Tihar, security has been beefed up in the eastern districts.

Regional Police Office (RPO) here in Biratnagar has directed the security chiefs of all the 16 districts to remain on high alert.

Deputy Inspector General of Police at the RPO, Bhisma Parsain, informed that they brought such a plan to curb criminal activities such as looting, abduction, theft which are rife during this time. Highway patrolling has also been intensified during night time. The Armed Police Force and the Nepal Police personnel have been deployed on round-the-clock patrol in the highway areas . According to him, plain clothed security personnel have also been mobilised in the temple, bank and industrial areas to thwart any untoward incidents.

DIGP Parsain also claimed that they had established security check points at different points of the region. “We’ve started carrying out security checks at the bordering areas with neighbouring India.’’

According to the RPO, gambling is strictly prohibited in the eastern region

during the festival season

as it is deemed to be

the main cause of many criminal activities .

DIGP Parsain further claimed that they had already started apprehending and punishing the persons involved in professional gambling.

The office also claimed that the special security strategy was very successful to curb the criminal activities, specially in the eastern Tarai districts. According to the RPO, the police were successful in detaining some of the most wanted leaders of the armed outfits and confiscated a large amount of arms and ammunition after implementation of the strategy.