Bhubaneswar, 15 June (H.S.) : Puri Police have launched a special enforcement drive ahead of the upcoming Rath Yatra, resulting in the arrest of 23 individuals involved in anti-social and criminal activities within the last 24 hours. Authorities also registered eight criminal cases during the operation, officials said on Monday.

Puri Superintendent of Police Prateek Singh stated that the district police force is fully prepared for the annual pilgrimage festival and is taking strict measures to ensure law and order. He said the objective is to make Puri safe and crime-free for devotees and residents during the large-scale religious gathering.

“As part of Rath Yatra preparedness, a special drive has been launched across Puri to ensure public safety. Our focus is to provide a secure environment for devotees,” the SP said while briefing the media.

According to police, the special drive led to coordinated raids across multiple police station jurisdictions under the Puri subdivision. Those arrested were allegedly involved in offences such as extortion, intimidation, and snatching. Several of the accused reportedly have prior criminal records.

Under the ongoing “Clean City Drive,” police also recovered weapons and illegal items, including three swords, four knives, iron rods, and over 7,500 litres of liquor.

In a separate case registered at Singhadwar Police Station, action was taken against individuals accused of cheating devotees by promising facilitated darshan of Lord Jagannath and his siblings in exchange for money.

Officials said intelligence inputs had indicated increased movement of anti-social elements in the town, prompting intensified surveillance, raids, and preventive action across all police stations.

So far this year, more than 300 anti-social elements have been arrested in the district. Police also reported 14 narcotics-related cases involving brown sugar with 28 arrests, 19 Corex-related cases with 29 arrests, along with 623 drunken driving cases and around 350 liquor-related offences.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Monalisa Panda