Kolkata: The Brigade Parade Ground is set to don a carnivalesque look on Saturday, the day Bengal’s first BJP chief minister takes his oath. As party functionaries and workers get cracking on the preparations, massive waterproof, hangar tents are being set up to seat 50,000 people, 10,000 special invites are being sent out and work is on to erect 20 district-wise themed entrances as well as stalls, selling jhalmuri, rasagolla and sandesh. Party functionaries expect close to 1 lakh people at the open-air, grand oath-taking event, which will also showcase Bengal’s culture and tradition, complete with chhau, gamira and baul performances, terracotta and Dakshineswar and Kali temple-inspired installations, and Sundarbans-themed decorations. Photos of Bengali icons, including Tagore and Bankimchandra, will be put up. “The Trinamool tried to label us anti-Bengali. We will show them how much we love and respect Bengali culture. It will be a one-of-a-kind event that Kolkata will remember for generations,” said Manoj Pandey, a BJP functionary, in charge of the arrangements.Given the rain prediction for Saturday, BJP officials said there would be three, large, rainproof tents, spread over a 400-sqm area, all facing Victoria Memorial. The main dais, to be divided into three parts, will be built in front of the middle tent. “In the first segment of the dais, PM Narendra Modi and Union home minister Amit Shah will sit with the chief ministers of 21 states. The governor will sit in the second segment, next to an oath podium and a table, where the new CM and the council of ministers will sign the documents. In the third segment, the CM-designate will sit with the council of ministers,” said another BJP functionary, overseeing the preparations, on Thursday.A separate area is being created for 1,000 special VVIP invitees, including judges, industrialists, litterateurs and other celebrities. Another seating area is being created for 207 MLAs and 12 MPs, besides senior BJP functionaries of Bengal.To clear the ground, stray dogs have been removed from the Maidan.Around 4,000 police personnel will be deployed in and around the Maidan to maintain law and order. The ground is being earmarked into 30 sectors, each to be overseen by a DCP or ACP-rank officer.The programme is slated to start at 10 am but invitees and party workers are expected to start arriving early in the morning. “As the oath-taking ceremony is being held on Rabindra Jayanti, Rabindrasangeet will play in the background. At the same time, there will be special musical performances at different corners of the venue. The entire portion will be covered to ensure guests and performers do not get drenched in the rain,” said another BJP functionary.Once the ceremony is over, the new CM, along with his deputies and select dignitaries, will head to the Writers’ Buildings to mark the symbolic start of his office from the second floor of the state secretariat. The new CM will then head for Vidhan Sabha, 1.5 km away, where he will operate till his Writers’ Buildings chamber is ready.
