Tight security in place for Milad-un-Nabi fests

HYDERABAD: Even as the 'purana shahar' (Old City) of Hyderabad is all decked up for the Milad-Un-Nabi (birth anniversary of Prophet Mohammed) festivities on Sunday, the Hyderabad city police has put in place tight security to ensure that the festival passes off without incidents.Though security arrangements for festivities is common all year round, this time police officials seem to have done some research on what various festivals mean to the city's security and what it would mean in future."Fifteen years from now, Milad-Un-Nabi and the Vinayak Chaturthi festival would fall in the same month.This calculation is arrived at going by the lunar calendar followed by one community and the calendar followed by the other.The lunar calendar keeps advancing," South Zone DCP Manish Sinha said.This year, the police officials have centralised the processions taken out for Milad-un-Nabi and a single procession would be taken out from Mecca Masjid to Moghalpura playground via Darulshifa.At least 45 organisers were keen on taking out various processions but on the request of policemen, the Muslim community agreed to one procession."Of late, festivities by both communities has reduced to a show of strength.Over the last 10 days, we had several meetings with Ulemas and organisers, encouraging them to have restrained festivity," the DCP said.For Sunday's festivities and procession (jalsa), the Hyderabad police is deploying 10 platoons of AP Special Police, City Armed Reserve and two companies of Rapid Action Force besides the entire force of south zone