Preparations afoot at Ramlila Maidan for swearing-in ceremony of new Chief Minister of Delhi- Arvind Kejriwal

Preparations are underway at the historic Ramlila Maidan in Central Delhi for the oath-taking ceremony of AAP leader Arvind Kejriwal, who is to be sworn-in as the new, and the youngest, chief minister of the state on December 26.

Arrangements were afoot at the venue where anti-graft crusader Anna Hazare's massive protest rallies earlier for passage of the Jan Lokpal Bill brought Kejriwal into national prominence.

"The levelling and earth-filling works have already been done... Now, we are working on sanitation and urinal arrangements at the huge 15-acre venue," North Delhi Municipal Corporation (NDMC) Public Relations Officer, Yogendra Singh Mann, told PTI.

Sources said that Kejriwal had told the Lt Governor Najeeb Jung that December 26 would be his preferred date for taking oath although the date has not been officially communicated to NDMC.

Mann said that they have been asked by the Delhi Chief Secretary to make arrangements for the ceremony but confirmed that the "date has not been officially communicated to NDMC so far".

"We have put up three tents so far. About 50 workers are present at the Maidan... We are more or less set for the ceremony and tomorrow morning will be adding finishing touches to the preparations," Mann added.

Officials said that NDMC is equipped to handle the crowd at the venue as they had "done during Anna Hazare's rallies".

"We don't see any challenges as per our job requirements here. The traffic and security will be taken care of by Delhi Police and everything is running smoothly," he said.

The Delhi Chief Secretary held a meeting this evening with senior officials, including the NDMC commissioner, regarding the preparations for the swearing-in ceremony.