Police seek more hands for IPL gala

Bidhannagar police have sought the help of their city counterparts to manage traffic around Salt Lake stadium on Tuesday, when rapper Pitbull, Shah Rukh Khan and Katrina Kaif are expected to perform there at the inauguration ceremony of IPL 2013.

According to an estimate, about 5,000 cops will be needed inside and outside the stadium for the event. Since the commissionerate has only around 1,600 on its rolls, it’s banking on Calcutta police to bail it out.The police expect a full house and hundreds of people on the roads leading to the stadium for a glimpse of the stars.

“We would need about 4,000 hands inside the stadium. It will be impossible to manage traffic with our limited resources,” said a senior officer of Bidhannagar City Police.

“Apart from Calcutta police, we have asked North 24-Parganas police for additional force,” he added.

Senior officers of Calcutta and Salt Lake police have met once to discuss deployment and other arrangements. They will meet again later this week.

A senior officer of Calcutta police traffic wing said they were ready to provide personnel for the event.

“We met last Saturday to discuss the matter. Our officers will be posted outside the venue. We would also conduct joint survey and surveillance of the stadium to maintain law and order during the event,” said the officer.

The lax security in the stadium was exposed during the December 9 derby between Mohun Bagan and East Bengal, when two sets of supporters clashed, injuring several spectators, policemen and even Bagan midfielder Syed Rahim Nabi. Trouble spilled on to the streets, where the hooligans damaged several vehicles and disrupted traffic.

The 800 officers of Bidhannagar police deployed for the match looked helpless as supporters went on the rampage.

With the IPL inaugural ceremony expected to attract a larger crowd than the derby clash, the commissionerate does not want to take any chance.

In addition to the stars, chief minister Mamata Banerjee, several Trinamul ministers and governor M.K. Narayanan are on the invitee list.

According to sources, the chief minister herself is trying to ensure that the event is a success.

Transport and sports minister Madan Mitra and youth affairs minister Aroop Biswas, whom she has asked to oversee arrangements, had visited the stadium on Monday.