President Droupadi Murmu arrived in Bhubaneswar at around 2:45 PM on Monday to commence a three-day official visit to Odisha, with official engagements lined up across Cuttack and Ganjam districts, officials said.
A high-level delegation including Governor Hari Babu Kambhampati, Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi, Bhubaneswar Mayor Sulochana Das, Chief Secretary Anu Garg, and DGP Y B Khurania received the President at the airport.
Following her arrival, President Murmu proceeded to Lok Bhavan for a brief rest before departing for Damapada in Cuttack district to inaugurate Jagadguru Kripalu Maharaj University. She later returned to Bhubaneswar to spend the night at Lok Bhavan.
On Tuesday morning around 9 AM, the President is scheduled to undertake a train journey to Berhampur in Ganjam district.
To ensure absolute safety, her special salon coach will be flanked by two escort trains – one in the front and another in the rear – with no other rail traffic permitted on the track during the movement, an official said.
Railway stations at both Bhubaneswar and Berhampur have been converted into high-security zones, with the deployment of bomb disposal teams, sniffer dogs, and intensive baggage screening measures.
Officials informed that around 15 platoons of police personnel, alongside the Railway Protection Force (RPF) and Government Railway Police (GRP), have been posted at Bhubaneswar railway station.
Upon reaching Berhampur, President Murmu will travel to the Maa Kandhuni Devi shrine near the Taptapani hot springs in Sanakhemundi block to offer prayers.
She will halt overnight at the Army AD College in Golabandha before returning by train to Bhubaneswar on August 5 to embark for New Delhi aboard a special Indian Air Force aircraft.
“The President’s train travel itinerary was planned taking into account the rainfall forecast issued by the IMD,” stated a senior police official.
An official stated that Odisha Police, in coordination with central intelligence agencies, have put elaborate security arrangements in place across Bhubaneswar, Cuttack, and Ganjam under Blue Book protocols.
Around 40 platoons of police and close to 150 officers have been stationed across Bhubaneswar and Cuttack, with SP-rank officers assigned to oversee venue-specific security while armed commandos accompany the President throughout, officials said.
Ganjam Collector V Keerthi Vasan said that all designated visit sites within the district have been designated as “no-flying” zones.
The Collector added that Governor Kambhampati and CM Majhi are expected to join the President during her temple visit on Tuesday.
