Bhubaneswar: Major areas of Puri town, including the Jagannath temple and the Gundicha temple, will remain under CCTV vigilance during rath yatra.

Chief administrator of the Jagannath temple P.K. Mohapatra said: "All the required arrangements have been made for the state's biggest festival. The CCTVs have been installed at all strategic places. The entire shrine is under CCTV cover. With god's blessings, we are hopeful of holding the rath yatra smoothly"

As rath yatra is three days away, police forces, including senior officials, on Wednesday reached Puri. They will remain in the town till the end of rath yatra.

Director general of police R.P. Sharma on Wednesday briefed the police on how to co-ordinate the security matters. They have been told to be gentle in their behaviour with the devotees and not to use force on them.

Sharma said: "Around 140 platoons of state armed police will be deployed. About 1,000 officers will also be on duty for rath yatra. Senior officials will monitor the movement of traffic through CCTVs."

He spoke about ways to manage traffic movement from July 13 till the end of Niladri Vije on July 25.

Personnel of the National Security Guard (NSG), CRPF, Rapid Action Force and other elite forces and the intelligence bureau will also be deployed for the rath yatra.

The coast guard has been requested to deploys its ship and intensify patrolling off the coast of Puri to prevent any infiltration using sea routes. The state government has also made Puri and its periphery areas a no-flying zone.

The temple administration's sub committee on Wednesday held a meting under the chairmanship of the scion of the erstwhile royal family of Puri, Gajapati Dibya Singh Deb, on how to recover the land belonging to the Puri Shankaracharya's mutt. Most of the lands have been encroached.

A delegation of servitors took khali (a traditional form of white colour) to be used in the deities ahead of banaklagi (the colouring of Lord Jagannath) on Thursday.

The servitors on Wednesday also started installing the crown or kalash atop the chariots.