The Odisha police are seriously considering to impose a ban on flying of drones with cameras over the temple town of Puri during the Jagannath Rath Yatra or the Car Festival this year. The week-long colourful festival is scheduled to be held in the temple town from July 4 and the pre-festival rituals have already begun.
Police sources said the movement of drones will be restricted particularly over Bada Danda or the grand road in front of the Jagannath temple where the Raths or the chariots of Jagannath, Balabhadra and Subhadra, the three presiding deities of the Puri temple will be pulled.
The step is being initiated as part of security arrangements for the grand festival which is expected to be attended by lakhs of devotees from both within the country and outside. The matter was debated at a high-level security meeting held here recently which was chaired by director general (DG) of the state police R P Sharma.
Besides, the union civil aviation ministry would also be requested to restrict the movement of choppers over Puri during the festival as a precautionary security measure.
Apart from more than 150 platoons of Odisha police, the rapid action force (RAF), the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), the national security guard (NSG), National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and Odisha Disaster Rapid Action Force (ODRAF) personnel will be deployed in the temple town during the festival.
Representatives of all these state and central agencies, as well as representatives from the Indian Navy and Coast Guards who will be in charge of manning the Puri coastline during the important festival, were present in the high-level security meeting.