LAHORE: The 973rd three-day Urs of Hazrat Ali bin Usman Al-Hajveri – popularly known as Hazrat Data Ganj Bakhsh – began in the provincial capital on Saturday.
Finance Minister and Data Darbar Religious Affairs Committee Chairman Ishaq Dar inaugurated the Urs by laying a ‘chaddar’ at the shrine. The provincial government made special security arrangements and security personnel had been deputed at several areas.
A five-tier security measure has been implemented with at least 1,000 surveillance cameras installed to monitor the celebrations. Over 2,000 police personnel have been deployed at the Darbar – while walk-through gates have been placed at all the entrances with security guards carrying metal detectors to frisk the visitors.
The Lahore Electric Supply Company (LESCO), Water and Sanitation Agency (WASA), the Civil Defence Department, Rescue-1122 and the Health Department facilitated the devotees by setting up camps.