The Ahmedabad Navratri safety plan will require commercial garba organisers to complete a mandatory 24-point security audit every day, as Ahmedabad Rural Police prepare for large crowds at venues across Bopal, Shela, Hathijan and Sanand.
The measures were outlined at a meeting with organisers chaired by Ahmedabad Rural Superintendent of Police Omprakash Jat at the police headquarters. The plan focuses on women’s safety, organiser accountability, fire and electrical precautions, structural stability, traffic management and night patrolling.
Under the new arrangement, the police station responsible for each garba venue will conduct a security audit. Organisers have been instructed to submit fire safety, electrical safety and structural stability certificates to the local police station on a daily basis. The requirement applies to commercial garba events held at farms, party plots and clubs in the Ahmedabad Rural police jurisdiction.
Organisers have also been told to maintain police help desks, separate help desks for women and children, CCTV control rooms and medical teams at the venues. Separate entry lines for women will be required, while larger garba events must provide women bouncers and women security guards.
Each major venue will have to nominate a nodal person to remain in contact with the coordination officer at the relevant police station. Organisers have been instructed to keep suitable access routes open for emergency vehicles and to provide separate entry gates for women at all major venues.
Police teams, including SHE Teams, will monitor garba venues, parking areas and poorly lit locations. The teams will operate in traditional and khaki uniforms, according to the plan. Ahmedabad Rural Police will also maintain a night presence during the Navratri period and up to Diwali, with personnel deployed on roads until 1 am and night rounds conducted from 11 pm to 5 am.
The police have warned organisers not to sell passes beyond a venue’s capacity. Action will also be taken against people illegally collecting parking charges or reselling event passes at commercial garba venues. The measures are intended to address crowd density, access control and movement around venues where large numbers of visitors are expected.
Police officials said more than 700 large and small commercial and community garba events were held across Ahmedabad district last year. This year, Ahmedabad Rural is expected to host more than 800 events, including around 20 commercial garba programmes.
The safety plan will also use drones and artificial intelligence-assisted crowd management at commercial garba venues. The supplied report does not specify the technology provider, operating protocol or the precise conditions under which the systems will be deployed. The next operational step is the implementation of the daily audits, venue-level coordination and police deployment during the festival period.
