Kolkata: The Birbhum district administration has put in place extensive safety arrangements for Kaushiki Amabasya on Sept 10, when thousands of devotees are expected to converge at Tarapith — for the first time after a hotel fire last month killed eight people in the temple town.On fire safety, 200 firemen and eight robot fire tenders with high-power pumps will be deployed for rapid emergency response, alongside a 25-member Arjun Vahini disaster response team.Fire safety checks and drills at hotels began on Wednesday and have been made mandatory. Bathing ghats have been barricaded with nets, and speed boats and rescue vans will remain stationed until Sept 12.On security, 4,000 police personnel will be on duty across 27 assistance booths, supported by 400 CCTV cameras, 11 watch towers, drone surveillance and face recognition cameras at strategic locations, according to a senior police officer.Eastern Railway will run a special train between Howrah and Rampurhat from Thursday to Sunday. The Howrah-bound departure leaves Rampurhat at 6:45pm, arriving at 11:45pm; the return leaves Howrah at 12:50am, reaching Rampurhat at 5:30pm.Additional general coaches will be added to the Howrah-Jamalpur Kaviguru Express, Howrah-Rampurhat Shahid Express and Howrah-Azimganj Ganadevata Express, with return trains also seeing additional coaches.
