Surat: Two incidents of crowd surges during Ganesh Agaman processions have raised concerns over crowd management and the safety of devotees during the upcoming Ganesh Chaturthi festival, with large gatherings of 10,000 to 20,000 people being reported at some events.Both incidents occurred in the Ram Chowk area under Umra police station recently.The Shri Ganesh Utsav Samiti, Surat, has also expressed concern over the growing crowds and the way some processions are being organised.“Surat needs to be careful as thousands of people are gathering at Ganesh welcome ceremonies. Rules regarding idol height are not always followed, while the scale of celebrations and displays is also increasing. People should avoid places where very large crowds gather, as poor crowd management could lead to a serious incident,” said Anil Biscuitwala, working president of the Shri Ganesh Utsav Samiti, Surat.Biscuitwala said police should take strict action against organisers who fail to follow safety norms, while Ganesh mandals should also exercise restraint and avoid unnecessary showmanship.About 10 days ago, a procession organised by a group drew more than 20,000 people, resulting in crowd-related chaos. Police said a large number of people gathered while organisers kept the crowd waiting for the curtains to be raised, leading to congestion and disorder.Police said additional precautions were taken for the second procession by the another group on Sunday. The organisers deployed around 130 bouncers in addition to the police presence. However, the event still attracted a large crowd following social media publicity and the holiday.“After the earlier incident, we took extra precautions for the second procession. Despite the deployment of 130 bouncers and police personnel, the large turnout led to crowd-management issues. We are considering issuing notices to Ganesh mandals over mismanagement,” a senior police officer said.Police commissioner Wabang Jamir told TOI, “We are informed about Ganesh Aagman events in advance by the organisers. We deploy local police, home guards and other personnel in coordination with the organisers. If a large crowd is expected or gathers at the venue, we also deploy additional personnel from other police stations.””
