Bhubaneswar: Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi on Wednesday reviewed preparations for the upcoming Bahuda Yatra of Lord Jagannath and His siblings on July 24 and directed officials to emphasise crowd management and seamless information flow to ensure the smooth conduct of the festival.

Chairing a review meeting at Lok Seva Bhawan, the Chief Minister also appealed to devotees and pilgrims to cooperate with the administration and follow the guidelines issued by the police and district authorities during the festivities.

During the meeting, officials informed the Chief Minister that all major rituals associated with the Rath Yatra have so far been conducted smoothly. Despite continuous rainfall, adverse weather conditions, heat, and humidity, the dedication and service of officials, employees, servitors, and volunteers remained unaffected, ensuring the successful conduct of the rituals.

The Chief Minister appreciated the commitment and devotion of the servitors and thanked them for their dedicated service. He also commended government officials and employees for working in a coordinated manner with a strong team spirit in the service of Lord Jagannath and the devotees.

Majhi instructed officials to strengthen crowd management by adopting scientific methods to assess crowd density. He emphasised that real-time information from CCTV cameras should be integrated with the Integrated Command and Control Centre so that alerts can be immediately communicated to officials at locations facing congestion, enabling quick intervention.

With major events such as the Bahuda Yatra, Suna Besha, and Niladri Bije still ahead, the Chief Minister directed officials to ensure that all rituals and crowd management arrangements are carried out efficiently and without disruption.