Overview
- Immersions of more than 2,000 Durga idols began Tuesday at seven designated ghats, with cranes, divers and fire engines staged at each site to manage crowds and water safety.
- The Bhopal Municipal Corporation cancelled leave for fire personnel and placed all fire stations on high alert through Diwali while a 24x7 control room now coordinates with police and the district administration.
- Nodal officers and senior officials have been assigned to each ghat and will run three-shift staffing that includes assistant engineers, sub-engineers and rescue teams to keep operations running until immersions finish.
- Following an early-October blaze in New Market, the civic body has stepped up mock drills, fire-hydrant inspections and route-clearance drives that remove temporary stalls, trim branches and repair potholes to ensure emergency vehicles can reach sites.
- Residents and organisers must use designated ghats, keep barricades and licensed fireworks in place, and report problems to the fire brigade control room at 0755-2542222, 2701401 or 2540220 or to emergency numbers 101 and 112.