Tight security, better planning keep Shirgao jatra incident free

Shirgao: By 9pm on Tuesday, roads leading to Shirgao in Bicholim were packed with vehicles as devotees arrived at the goddess Lairai temple complex for the famed jatra. By 10pm, thousands had gathered at the venue.

After last year’s stampede, an unprecedented tragedy at the jatra in which six people lost their lives, the authorities appeared to have learned key lessons.
The temple complex and surrounding areas were fully lit to remove blind spots. Parking zones were clearly marked, and traffic police kept vehicles moving to prevent snarls.

For hundreds of police personnel, the real test, however, began after the homkhund, a large pile of wood, was lit. From around 11.30pm, devotees started moving towards it in anticipation of the fire-walking ritual. In the ritual, dhonds — who are devotees of goddess Lairai — walk across the smouldering embers left after the homkhund burns down.

Last year’s stampede had broken out when the dhonds were moving from the temple pond to the homkhund after taking a dip. To avoid a repeat of the incident this year, the police formed human chains to keep that route clear and to control the crowd. With stalls barred from the main venue and only a few allowed elsewhere, the path remained open.

At around 2am on Wednesday, the dhonds began approaching the homkhund. Security faced its biggest challenge there as crowds leaned through police lines to watch the ritual. Pressure peaked again at around 5am, when a devotee carried the goddess through the crowd.

Despite the heavy turnout, the event passed without incident. Additional watchtowers at key points, drone surveillance and a control room set up closer to the homkhund helped the authorities manage the situation. The police successfully kept the dhonds and other visitors separated throughout.

Also, for the first time, wheelchairs and free water bottles were provided. A separate pandal was erected where doctors treated devotees who fainted from exhaustion, often giving them oral rehydration salts. Teams from the police, the fire and emergency services, the administration and health sector remained on alert and monitored the situation throughout.

Visitors said that the removal of stalls from the venue was the single biggest reason there was no congestion at the jatra this year. Devotees also remained cooperative in the wake of last year’s stampede.

Praising the arrangements at this year’s jatra, both dhonds and devotees said they hoped the measures would continue in the years ahead, and not remain limited to the year after the tragedy.