Patna: Durga Puja pandals failing to comply with fire-safety guidelines will be sealed from Sunday, DIG Nat warned on Friday, as the fire services stepped up safety checks ahead of the festival. Patna has around 1,500 pandals this year, including nearly 100 large installations, a 30-32% increase over last year, said the DIG.Organisers have been directed to rectify safety gaps by Sunday. The department will distribute fire-safety videos through pen drives, display emergency contact numbers at pandals and train volunteers. Synthetic decorations, open flames, candles, diyas, halogen lights, fireworks, havan kunds and smoking on pandal premises have been prohibited. The DIG cautioned organisers against neglecting precautions after Ashtami.Meanwhile, Patna Municipal Corporation (PMC) has stepped up preparations for Durga Puja and Chhath, with municipal commissioner Yashpal Meena reviewing arrangements on Friday and directing officials to meet deadlines.Temporary immersion ponds will be built at designated locations, including a six-foot-deep pond at Minar Ghat and a 150-foot-by-50-foot immersion area at Law College Ghat. Three ponds will also come up at Kangan, Qila and Damrahi ghats, while the existing pond at Patipul Ghat will be cleaned and repaired. Barricading and lighting will be provided at immersion sites.The PMC will deploy 30 additional sanitation workers in Patliputra circle and 140 in Azimabad circle. Ten additional workers have been approved for every ward, with a special cleanliness drive continuing through Chhath. Divers will remove idol remains and puja materials as required.Meena also ordered closer monitoring of Ganga ghats amid fluctuating water levels, deep cleaning of exposed areas and repairs of damaged manholes, slabs and catch pits.
