Guidelines issued to ensure smooth New Year celebrations in Fort Kochi

The Mattancherry BOT Bridge, which links Kochi city with West Kochi, has been illuminated in connection with the New Year celebrations.
| Photo Credit: H. VIBHU

The police, Motor Vehicles Department (MVD), and other enforcement agencies have issued guidelines and traffic curbs to ensure smooth and safe New Year celebrations in and around Fort Kochi, the hub for festivities.

The Cochin Carnival rally, originally scheduled for Tuesday (January 1), would now take place in Fort Kochi on Wednesday (January 2).

A total of 1,000 police personnel, led by the Ernakulam Deputy Commissioner of Police and including over 100 women officers, will be deployed to ensure the safety of visitors expected to gather at Fort Kochi and nearby areas for celebrations on Tuesday. Besides, more than 400 CCTVs have been installed at Veli Ground, where the burning of Pappanji (the giant effigy of an old man) is scheduled, and throughout Fort Kochi, said Putta Vimaladitya, the District Police Chief (Kochi City).

The Veli Ground will be divided into four segments to ensure the safety of revellers, with adequate entry and exit points. Control rooms for the police and other departments will be set up on the ground. A double-layer barricade will be installed around the effigy, and public address systems will relay instructions throughout the event. Sufficient lighting and generators will also be provided. All barricades and curbs will be eased by midnight to facilitate the return of attendees. A dedicated police evacuation team and ambulances will be on standby, with designated emergency routes in place.

Police personnel will be stationed in plainclothes to deter crimes such as theft and chain snatching. Vehicle checks will be intensified from the early hours of Tuesday to prevent drunk driving. The Coastal police boats will be deployed to patrol nearby waterbodies.

The police said that the roll-on roll-off (ro-ro) ferries would transport vehicles from Vypeen to Fort Kochi only till 4 p.m. on New Year’s eve, while commuters would be transported on the ferries, along with the State Water Transport department (SWTD) and Water Metro ferries, till 7 p.m.

The Water Metro ferries would operate every 10 minutes from noon until 7 p.m. on Tuesday. The ferries would also run from Vypeen to High Court between 11:30 p.m. on Tuesday and 4:30 a.m. on Wednesday. Besides, the metro would make extra trips from 4 p.m. to 10 p.m., with services continuing till 1:30 a.m. on Tuesday, sources said.

Commuters will need to walk to designated bus stops to travel back to the city and other destinations. Additional KSRTC buses will be deployed after midnight. Vehicle entry to Fort Kochi will be blocked at a dozen points to prevent traffic congestion in the area. Parking facilities have been arranged at grounds and open spaces. The police said traffic curbs would be implemented at Cherai, Munambam, and other beaches.