Nashik police to patrol Sadhugram on bicycles

The ongoing Kumbhmela has seen many firsts, one of them being the use of bicycles by police for patrolling. In addition to using motor vehicles and two wheelers, the police have resorted to using eco-friendly and handy bicycles that can be used to navigate any terrain. 

The Nashik police on Friday distributed 50 bicycles to its personnel to patrol Sadhugram in Tapovan. The sadhugram, a temporary abode of sadhu mahants for the Kumbhmela, is spread across 335 acres of land and includes roads of more than 370 acres. The akhadas are crowded with pilgrims. Repeated incidents of thefts have led to intense patrolling. The decision to use bicycles was taken by the Nashik police commissioner as motorised four-wheelers and two-wheelers cannot navigate the area easily.

Some companies under their corporate social responsibility schemes donated 50 bicycles to the police department. These were distributed to all the police chowkis, especially near sadhugram.

“The visbility of police will be more on bicycles and will be effective in helping pilgrims. The bicycles will be used in addition to motor vehicles,” said Nashik police commissioner S Jaggannathan.

“Vehicles are difficult to navigate in sadhugram and using bicycles is better than patrolling on foot. The practice also has health benefits,” said Jaggannathan. 

The bicycles will be useful in the old city areas during parvani days. Around 1,000 police personnel deployed for bandobast at sadhugram are expected to use bicycles for patrolling.