BHUBANESWAR: Police conducted a security drill at Blue Flag beach in Puri on Thursday and assured the tourists for round the clock police assistance. Cops interacted with tourists and sensitized them to take the help of the lifeguards while bathing in the sea.
“Our focus is to make tourists feel safe on the beach. Lifeguards demonstrated their emergency rescue skills and were asked to remain vigilant to prevent drowning mishaps,” Puri superintendent of police Kanwar Vishal Singh said.
Copenhagen-based Foundation for Environmental Education (FEE) had accorded Blue Flag certification to 900-metre Golden Beach from Digabareni to Mayfair Hotel on October 11. It is Odisha’s first Blue Flag beach with the state government promoting it in a big way to attract more tourists, mostly foreigners.
Death of a tourist by drowning at the Blue Flag beach on October 27 had raised questions on the safety protocol at the beach. Safe bathing zone with adequate lifeguard facility and CCTV surveillance were the key features of the Blue Flag beach. At present, 12 lifeguards have been deployed at the Blue Flag beach.
Appreciating the security drill, tourists urged the district administration to mobilize speed boats for prompt response and rescue of the drowning persons. “Any sea is vulnerable to drowning mishaps. We can only request tourists to take the assistance of lifeguards, but cannot force them. The government should keep at least three or four speed boats to carry out prompt rescue operations. Lifeguards cannot swim in high waves to save someone,” said Kuldeep Ray, a tourist said.
It must be noted, the state fire service directorate had in September 2017 procured a high speed jet-ski watercraft at the cost of nearly Rs 15 lakh for conducting rescue operations in the sea. But the rescue watercraft has been lying defunct for the last two years.
“The administration has been claiming Blue Flag beach as a safe bathing zone. Tourists have been paying a certain user fee to enter the Blue Flag beach. The administration should ensure safety of the tourists and procure speed boats,” said Debasis Das, convenor of Srikhetra Swabhiman Manch, a civil society organisation.