HYDERABAD, Jan 29: Close to 11,000 police and Rangers personnel would be deployed in Hyderabad region, which comprised 12 districts, to ensure peace on the Ashura Day on Tuesday.

Police have identified around 14 areas as highly sensitive and 82 as sensitive in the districts where about 330 Majalis would be held on Monday and Tuesday, the 9th and 10th of Muharramul Harram and 624 processions would be brought out.

Hyderabad region comprise the districts of Hyderabad, Tando Allahyar, Tando Mohammad Khan, Matiari, Jamshoro, Badin, Thatta, Dadu, Sanghar, Mirpurkhas, Umerkot and Tharparkar.

It appeared the authorities had tightened security in the wake of two successive suicide bombings in Islamabad and Peshawar. Even otherwise they had already put the security personnel on high alert since the commencement of Muharram with police and Rangers conducting snap-checking at the entry and exist points of the districts.

The DIGs of police of Hyderabad and Mirpurkhas are monitoring the security arrangements under the supervision of Regional Police Officer (RPO) Sultan Salahuddin Babar Khattak who has recently assumed charge. "Every possible effort has been undertaken to ensure peace in the region," he told Dawn.

Until Monday no untoward incident was reported from any part of the district and its suburbs with police having adopted elaborate security measures in the city with round-the-clock monitoring of mourning processions which would start from Qadam Gah Maula Ali and culminate at Karbala Dadan Shah on Ashura Day.

The Taazia processions would be brought out from Sakhi Pir, Tilak Incline and head towards Phulelli through Station Road after matami processions came to an end by 3 pm.

Police who would be posted on the rooftops of houses located off the procession route have asked the residents not to allow unconcerned persons to climb onto the rooftops for watching processions.

All the vehicular traffic from National Highway would enter the city through Combined Military Hospital (CMH) Road. Salahuddin Road in Cantonment area and the road in Latifabad would be opened for traffic.

The main route of the procession and its connecting streets would be closed with barbed wires and the area would be closed for all kind of vehicular traffic between 6 am to 10 pm.

Commuters and motorists will have to make detours to enter the city because Station Road, the main thoroughfare, will be closed at both ends.

Close-circuit cameras connected to a control room set up in the taluka police officer's (TPO) office have already been installed along the route for central procession. Out of 383 mourning processions, 144 are considered sensitive.

On Tuesday 72 mourning processions will be brought out in Hyderabad district and police considers five of them as very sensitive. "Special Branch squad will search vehicles that will lead mourning processions or are part of them," said a police spokesman.

Medical camps have been established by police, Rangers, political and social welfare organisations while police have set up 58 pickets and four emergency camps.

Qasim Rangers have deployed around 1,200 jawans in Hyderabad, Tando Mohammad Khan, Tando Allahyar, Mirpurkhas, Umerkot, Matiari, Jamshoro and Dadu.

Out of the 1,200, 700 Rangers personnel are deployed in Hyderabad. Qasim Rangers have set up five medical camps at Sakhi Wahab Complex, Hussainabad, Tilak Incline, Maula Ali and Phulelli with total deployment of 700 Rangers personnel.

An official of Rangers said that Badin and Thatta districts would be looked after by Thar Rangers, Indus Rangers would be supplementing police force in Nawabshah, Sanghar, Naushahro Feroze and Shahbaz Rangers would look after Sukkur, Khairpur, Shikarpur and Kashmore districts.

BAN ON PILLION-RIDING: Hyderabad District Nazim Kanwar Naveed Jamil under sections 144 banned pillion riding in the city on Monday and Tuesday.