Control rooms on 2 watchtowers, 2,500 cops to keep eye on Park St
Times of India | 24 December 2025
Kolkata: Park Street will turn into a large arena for Christmas gala from Wednesday afternoon, but under the watchful eyes of police with 2,000 personnel being assigned to Park Street along and another 500 for the periphery. Not taking any chance what with the Bangladesh violence and the recent terror attacks in Delhi, Lalbazar has also set up four watchtowers and will deploy drones.
Quick Response Teams, along with Winners and Shakti teams, will patrol the pedestrian-only street and surroundings to ensure women's safety. Two of the watchtowers are coming up at the Park Street-J L Nehru Road and Park Street-Rafi Ahmad Kidwai Road crossings, where temporary control rooms will be set up. Cops from the Park Street and Shakespeare Sarani police stations as well as plain-clothes cops from the detective department and special branch officers will be out on the streets. Senior officers will join in as evening approaches. Additional CCTV cameras have been installed.
Police for the first time is making arrangements to stop vehicles on Park Street on Christmas Eve, instead of the traditional Christmas Day. "We usually close Park Street on Christmas Day. But we have been asked to be prepared to restrict vehicles on Park Street even on Christmas Eve. But a final decision is awaited," said an officer, stating two accidents, involving a bus and a car at Allen Park and JL Nehru Road, made them consider pedestrians' security as a top priority. "If the crowd swells, we need to take a quick decision and shut Park Street to vehicles," said an officer.
With schools holidays already starting, people have been out in large numbers to soak in the winter sun and enjoy themselves outdoor. Consequent traffic jams across several parts of the city on Tuesday itself prompted police to be ready with alternative plans. The steady stream of visitors to Alipore zoo slowed down traffic on Alipore Road, Belvedere Road and AJC Bose Road. Popular entertainment and recreational places, such as Eco Park, Science City and Nicco Park, too drew large crowds. By evening, eating joints at Kasba, Ballygunge and Salt Lake started filling up, which, too, slowed down vehicle movement after 7 pm.
"As Christmas Eve is on a Wednesday, we expect a sizeable crowd of revellers in the Park Street area along with the usual office-goers returning home. We will try to ensure the crowds on Park Street keeps circulating and there is no build-up in any spot for too long," said an officer. Police plan to restrict the use of some Metro station gates at Park Street and Maidan for either entry or exit to prevent overcrowding.
Cops will be deployed in the other Christmas carnival zones, such as Lake Town, Patuli and Elgin Road, too. On the police's itinerary is also streamlining diners' vehicles in the Kasba and Sarat Bose Road area, which are dotted with cafes and restaurants.
Cop deployment at Alipore zoo is expected to start around 9 am on Wednesday and end around 2 am the next morning. There will be significant police deployment at St Paul's Cathedral and Science City as well.