New Year celebrations sweep across India amid tight security and festive fervour

Tourists celebrate and dance on Mall Road on New Year’s Eve in Manali, Kullu on December 31, 2025. (IANS Photo)

New Delhi, (IANS): India welcomed the New Year with grand celebrations, countdown parties and festive gatherings, as state governments across the country stepped up security measures to ensure that the celebrations passed off smoothly and without incident.

In major metropolitan cities, including Delhi and Mumbai, large crowds thronged iconic landmarks such as India Gate, Connaught Place and Marine Drive to usher in the New Year, creating a vibrant and festive atmosphere.

Meanwhile, authorities across the country issued traffic advisories, guidelines for restaurants and hotels, and deployed additional security forces in anticipation of massive footfall in public places.

Despite chilling conditions in Delhi, Connaught Place and Vasant Vihar saw a steady influx of revellers, with families and groups gathering in markets and open spaces ahead of the New Year celebrations.

Speaking to IANS in Connaught Place, a tourist said, "I have come from Punjab to celebrate the New Year here, and I hope this year is good for everyone."

"It is cold, but we are happy to welcome 2026 here with our friends," another said.

Officials said that in areas expecting heavy crowds in the national capital, the police put comprehensive security arrangements in place to prevent any untoward incidents and to maintain law and order.

Security arrangements on the ground in Delhi were closely monitored by several senior officials, including six Assistant Commissioners of Police and one Additional Deputy Commissioner of Police. As many as 1,469 police personnel were deployed across Delhi’s West District alone to ensure public safety during the celebrations.

In Rajasthan, stringent traffic safety measures were also implemented, including the setting up of checkpoints, inspection of vehicles and strict action against those found driving under the influence of alcohol.

In Maharashtra, eateries, restaurants, hotels, orchestra bars and pubs were permitted to operate till 5 a.m. on January 1 as part of the New Year celebrations.

In Bengaluru, around 20,000 police personnel were deployed to ensure smooth New Year’s Eve celebrations, as more than ten lakh people were expected to gather at various locations across the city for the festivities.Even as people in the eastern parts of the world began bidding farewell to 2025, popular hill destinations such as Shimla and Manali witnessed a huge rush of tourists and revellers, braving the biting cold to ring in the New Year amid the mountains. New Year celebrations sweep across India amid tight security and festive fervour | MorungExpress | morungexpress.com

Read More........ → January 02, 2026

Night curfew in Mumbai on UK virus strain fears

The Indian state of Maharashtra has imposed a night curfew on cities including the country’s financial hub Mumbai because of fears about the new coronavirus strain from Britain, the local government said.

In addition, Mumbai airport said Tuesday that all air passengers from anywhere in Europe or the Middle East will have to go into institutional quarantine upon arrival and then be tested.

The announcements come even though daily numbers of new coronavirus infections has fallen sharply in India in recent weeks, including in Maharashtra, whose capital Mumbai is home to one of Asia’s biggest slums.

India is yet to confirm any cases of the new strain.

The Maharashtra government said that the night curfew beginning on Tuesday would last until January 5.

The restrictions will put a dampener on New Year’s celebrations in Mumbai and elsewhere in the western state of around 120 million people, which has seen the most COVID-19 cases and deaths in India.

On Monday, India joined other countries in suspending all flights from Britain home to a large Indian diaspora starting from Tuesday night until December 31.

India has reported the world’s second-largest number of coronavirus infections after the United States and crossed the 10-million caseload mark last week. It has registered more than 145,000 deaths.

The Indian government hopes to start vaccinating the population early next year, including an initial 300 million people from high-risk groups and healthcare workers.India has yet to approve any vaccines but several drugmakers have applied for authorization, including AstraZeneca, which has partnered with India’s Serum Institute, the world’s largest vaccine maker. - AFP  Source: https://www.daily-bangladesh.com/

Read More........ → December 23, 2020

Now, 'Smart Helmets' confront corona headlong in Mumbai, Pune

For the first time in the country, 'Smart Helmets' have been deployed for mass screening of suspect COVID-19 cases in Mumbai and Pune, the country's two worst-hit metro regions, officials said here on Friday.

The deployment in Mumbai's northern suburbs is part of the recent public-private-partnership initiative of BrihanMumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) after the success achieved in Dharavi.

Imported from South Korea, the Smart Helmets have been provided by an NGO Bharatiya Jain Sanghatana (BJS), each costing Rs 6,00,000, taking the COVID-19 combat strategy to a new high-tech dimension, said BJS managing committee member Dr Neelu Jain.

"Each helmet is equipped with two cameras, an image camera in the front and a thermal camera on the side which can simultaneously screen 13 persons per minute," Dr Jain told IANS.

Earlier, the health teams used infrared thermal guns to check peoples' temperatures but it had limitations as it could screen around 200 persons in one hour.

However, the new portable Smart Helmets can screen up to 6,000 people per hour, provided they stand in a queue, making the process simpler and quicker, she said.

India's commercial and entertainment capital accounts for the country's highest 105,923 COVID-19 cases and 5,930 deaths till date. Source: https://southasiamonitor.org/:

Read More........ → August 25, 2020