Special floating barriers to act as ‘lifeguards’ along ghats
PRAYAGRAJ: It will be the first time when special floating plastic deep water barriers would line the prominent bathing ghats here during the Kumbh.
In florescent orange colour, these sturdy and inter-locking barriers would form a floating wall on the river thereby warning bathers and officials of the exact area from where deep water with powerful currents start in the river, Kumbh mela officials said.
Owing to their bright and reflective colour, these barriers joined together would form an effective barricading that would be visible both during night and late evening as well, they added.
Earlier, wooden poles were used for this very task. However huge gaps between them made it necessary for men to be posted at short intervals who were required to keep a constant vigil and warn bathers nearing the deep end of the ghats.
“These floating barriers are more economical, environment friendly and reusable unlike wooden poles that become weak with time and cannot be reused,” said Rajeev Kumar Rai, deputy Kumbh Mela Adhikari.
“Already the task of deploying these floating barriers is under way in full swing. Once complete, they would together form a 6-km long safety barricading,” he added.
These lightweight plastic barricades have a unique pin-andlock system to connect and pivot them up to 90 degrees, so one can create straight, arced or right-angle perimeters around bathing ghats as needed.
They are easily manageable, affordable, portable and tough on which a bather in trouble can even grasp on to if being swept by strong river currents, say officials.
In-charge of water police at Sangam, Kadedeen, whose unit performs bulk of the task of patrolling the ghats shared that tightly interlocked, these barriers prevent a bather from crossing over them from in between and reach deep waters—a feature that would be a big relief for staff on lifeguard duties, especially during peak bathing days when each ghat witnesses lakhs of pilgrims taking the dip in the holy waters.
“As the Kumbh is being held during peak winter season, these florescent barriers would especially be helpful to both pilgrims and security personnel during foggy days when visibility becomes very low,” he explained.