Officers join festival of Navratri celebrations

Community Engagement Officers from Northamptonshire Police joined members of the Northampton Indian Hindu Welfare Organisation as part of their festival of Navratri celebrations.

Detective Constable Rachel Packman and PC Christian Buckenham were invited to attend the event which was held at Northampton College in Booth Lane North, last Thursday (October 3).

Rachel said: “We were delighted to be invited to join in the celebrations. The event provided us with the opportunity to meet members of the local Hindu community and discuss any policing concerns they may have.”

During the event, Rachel and Christian also distributed leaflets in relation to hate crime and police engagement as well as provided crime prevention and personal safety advice.

The nine-day Navratri festival is one of the most important events in the Hindu calendar and this year’s runs from September 29 to October 8. Thursday’s event marked the fifth night of the celebrations.

The next major event in the Hindu calendar is Diwali, the festival of lights, which will be celebrated in Northampton town centre on Saturday, October 19.