Hamirpur (HP), February 27 (UNI) Deputy Commissioner, Debasweta Banik visited Baba Balak Nath temple at Deotsidh in the district and held talks with the management of the temple and other officers regarding the coming month long Chaitra fair that will start from March 13th.
Baba Balak Nath is known as the incarnation of Lord Kartekya, the son of Lord Shiva and Deotsidh was his abode during the period he stayed in the hills.
Nearly fifty to sixty lakh people across the country and abroad visit the temple every year to pay their obeisance to the Babaji.
The main rush of the devotees is witnesses during the chaitra fair.
This fair was stopped abruptly last year following the eruption of nationwide CORONAVIRUS.
The activities of the temple had recently started. However, some of the activities including the havan puja started only a few days ago.
During the visit in which he was accompanied by SP, Hamirpur, Gokulchandran Karthikeyan, the Deputy Commissioner reviewed the preparations of the fair in a meeting with the officials of police and various departments and non-official members of Baba Balak Nath Temple Trust in Deotsidh on Friday evening.
Later she said that the temple would be divided into five sectors during the fair and about 150 police personnel and 175 Home guard personals would be posted on duty to maintain law and order during the fair.
She said that special arrangements would be made for the fair this time in view of the Corona crisis. Thermal scanning will be provided at all the main entrance sites around the temple complex, she added.
The Deputy Commissioner, who is also the Commissioner of the temple under HP religious places endowment act directed the officials to check all the CCTV cameras installed at the temple premises and other important sites so that they could not become non functional during the fair.
Devasweta Banik also directed the officers of the fire and water power department to inspect the hydrants and ensure that adequate water was available there during the fair and in event of crisis.
She said that in view of the Corona crisis, private langar and jagran will not be allowed in the temple premises this time.
The Deputy Commissioner said that banners would be installed at all the main sites to make the devotees aware of the danger of Corona.
Apart from these, special instructions were also being issued for food, drinks and rot-Prasad shops and these will be inspected regularly, she added.
She said that the temple premises will be sanitized at least twice daily during the fair.
Devasweta Banik said that the Golden Himachal theme given by the state government will also be displayed during the fair to commemorate 50 years of Himachal Pradesh's full statehood as well as fifty years of the Hamirpur district also.
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