An Indian Space Research Organisation (Isro) team is in Bihar to collect feedback from government officials regarding satellite imaging of the January 21 human chain for prohibition.

The human chain - a state government initiative - is expected to be around 11,292km in length with over two crore people joining their hands in places across Bihar.

The Isro team met chief secretary Anjani Kumar Singh on Wednesday and discussed the modalities to capture satellite images of the event.

"It was decided there would be five satellites for generating real-time images of the human chain," Singh said.

While three of these satellites will be Indian, two will be foreign.

Of the 11,292km length, 3,700km will be along state and national highways, while the rest will at village, block and district levels. Participants will carry placards and banners with messages written in Hindi such as Mahilayon Ka Hua Sapna Saakar, Sharab Mukt Apna Bihar and Nasha Mukt Bihar, Nasha Mukt Bharat.

Drones and helicopters will also be deployed to capture images of the event, sources said.

Mirza Galib, director at the directorate of mass education (a wing of the education department), the nodal agency for the human chain event, said: "There will be a drone-camera in each district that will capture the images of the human chain. Also, six helicopters will have camerapersons to capture pictures from above."

At an event in Darbhanga on November 17 last year, chief minister Nitish Kumar had announced the human chain in support of prohibition. The government had set a target of having a 5,500km human chain, but later with the support of parties including the BJP the length was doubled.

The entire government machinery has been pressed into service for the event. Though the directorate of mass education is the nodal agency, the state government has assigned the task of making the event successful to district magistrates (DMs) too. At the district level, a working committee under the chairmanship of the DM concerned has been constituted under which various departments (education, health, rural development and others) have been told to make preparations. Tasks have been assigned to block development officers and mukhiyas.

Human chain major spots

♦ Patna-Hajipur-Muzaffarpur-Sitamarhi-Sonbarsa (163km)

♦ Barauni-Samastipur-Muzaffarpur-Motihari-Bettiah-Mangalpur (274km)

♦ Muzaffarpur-Darbhanga-Sakri-Simrahi-Araria-Thakurganj (348km)

♦ Barauni-Begusarai-Khagaria-Naugachia-Purnea-Dalkola (229km)

♦ Durgawati-Mohania-Sasaram-Aurangabad-Arwal-Jehanabad (223km)

♦ Patna-Dobhi-Barachatti (155km)

♦ Bakhtiyarpur-Bihar Sharif-Nawada-Rajauli (115km)