Nearly 20 lakh people visited Chaitya Bhoomi to pay homage to Dr B R Ambedkar on his 57th death anniversary Friday. Officials said the numbers have risen by nearly five lakh as compared to previous years. Chaitya Bhoomi is the site of Ambedkars last rites on December 6,1956. DCP (Zone V) Dhananjay Kulkarni said,Last year around 15 lakh people visited the memorial on the day. This year,we saw visitors from not only Maharashtra but also other states such as Tamil Nadu,Karnataka,Andhra Pradesh,Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh. The BMC had constructed a pandal measuring one lakh sq ft at Shivaji Park and set up tents in Chaitya Bhoomi,Dadar,to house an expected turnout of 10 lakh. The police had set up nine watch towers in and around Shivaji Park. Around 1,000 policemen were deployed in the vicinity. Around 250 makeshift bathrooms were constructed at Shivaji Park by BMC for visitors. For those who stayed the night,jute mats were provided inside the pandal. mumbai.newsline@expressindia.com
