Noida decks up to welcome SP supremo Mulayam

This is his first visit after the party was voted to power.

Noida is all decked up in posters and streamers to welcome Samajwadi Party president Mulayam Singh Yadav. This will be Yadav's first visit to the city after the SP was voted to power in the state.

The SP is sparing no expenses and party workers were seen working round the clock on Tuesday, putting up posters and making other arrangements to welcome the ex-chief minister.

Rakesh Yadav, a party worker, said, "Ordinarily, we prepare on a much larger scale than what can be seen. The visits by either Mulayam Singhji or Akhilesh are very important to show our strength in the region. But since we only found out that he was coming two days ago, we haven't had much time to prepare."

Organisers of the Akhil Bharatiya Gurjar Mahasabha, the event at which Yadav is scheduled to speak, said more than 5,000 people were expected to attend.

"An elaborate tent has been erected and another one is also being put up to accommodate the crowd. Normally, only about 500 farmers attend the annual Mahasabha, but this year, the numbers will be more. We are working with the representatives of the Samajwadi Party to make necessary arrangements as they have more experience than us in holding such rallies," Yogesh Dedha, one of the organisers of the Mahasabha, said.

Police said the party supremo was expected to enter Noida en-route to the venue in Hajipur village. "All security arrangements are in place along this route. Nearly 500 personnel will be manning the streets and the venue to make sure no untoward incidents take place. While we do not expect any problems in terms of traffic, personnel will also be deployed at the main entry point into Noida, and along the Noida-Greater Noida Expressway to ensure smooth movement of traffic," a police officer said.

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