Countdown begins in Kolkata to welcome 2020 in a grand manner.

Kolkata, Dec 31 (HS): As the entire city is now agog with excitement and the countdown has begun to welcome 2020 in a grand fashion within the next few hours, the West Bengal government has made all arrangements to ensure foolproof security to all enthusiasts and allowed everybody to enjoy the ongoing festive atmosphere to the fullest.

According to the police, as the Park Street and its surrounding areas are considered to be the nerve center of such festivity before welcoming the new year, as many as 5,000 odd police personnel, including about 1,000 women members of the force have been deployed in and around the area since this afternoon to prevent any untoward incident which could mar the festive mood of the general public.

A large number of women are also present in and around the Park Street area, every step has been taken to ensure their foolproof security, the police said adding apart from the presence of women combat force several scooters riding mobile women police force called ‘Winners’ and a large number of plainclothes women had also been posted in different corners and in vulnerable areas to prevent any illegal activities against women and young girls.

The police said a number of watchtowers along with a large number of CCTV cameras had also been installed to keep around the clock vigil on the general merrymakers on the highly illuminated two km long Park Street.

As lakhs of people of all ages and from all sections of the society have also assembled in all other tourist destinations in and around this ‘City of Joy’ including those at Victoria Memorial, Alipur Zoological Garden, Eco Park, Science  City, Nicco Amusement Park, Millenium Park and the famous Kali Temple at Dakshuineswar among others, similar arrangements had also been made in each of these areas to enable lakhs of people to enjoy the New Year’s eve in absolute peaceful manner so that they did not face any obstacle to enjoy the festive atmosphere to the fullest.

Wishing the people of West Bengal a happy and prosperous new year, Governor Jagdeep Dhankar in a twitter message said here this afternoon that he was ‘Recording New Year Message for the people of State of West Bengal in the historical Raj Bhawan Library while sitting on the iconic table from which Lord Curzon signed the first Partition of Bengal in 1905’.

Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee also wished the same to the people of the state and distributed sweets and other presents to a group of school children from Darjeeling and Kalimpong who came to see her at her South Kolkata residence earlier during the day.

Meanwhile, the overall temperature in and around the city has been hovering around 11.3 degrees Celsus today leading to a chilled atmosphere with every possibility of further reducing the temperature during the night.’ We love this weather and hope it to remain for several more days to help us use woolen garments, said Raktim Banerjee, a first-year Engineering student of Jadavpur University while getting ready to welcome the new year in a grand fashion with his friends and family at Park Street.