The Hindu : Police-residents contact programme on

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Sunday, Feb 02, 2003

Southern States

Southern States - Kerala-Thiruvananthapuram

Police-residents contact programme on

By Our Staff Reporter

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM Feb. 1. The City police have embarked upon a door-to-door resident contact programme that is aimed at ensuring enhanced police-public cooperation for preventing crime.

The City Police Commissioner, Rajan Singh, said that select police stations in the city have been divided into different sectors for the purpose. A head constable of police has been assigned to each sector. The constable's brief includes familiarising himself with residents in the area and establishing personal contact with the local citizens.

The house visits would be made during daytime. The constables have been asked to be cordial and to give a patient ear to what the residents have to say about various aspects of policing. The constable on the beat would file regular reports to his superiors at the Station House concerned. The Commissioner said the scheme, which was mooted in December last, has taken off well in the Pettah police station limits. The Sub-Inspectors in other police stations are being urged to make the programme a success. "There is no stringent direction as such. The success of the programme depends largely on the initiative of the SIs and men in individual stations,'' he said.

Mr. Singh said the scheme was primarily aimed at making residents feel more confident in approaching the police and accessing the various services offered by the city police constabulary. For instance, a citizen approaching the local police station would find a familiar face in the constable who is in charge of the sector he hails from.

The Commissioner said another important objective of the scheme was to collect information on location-specific crimes of serious as well as petty nature.

By instilling confidence in the local populace through a one-to-one contact programme, it is reckoned that the police would find it less difficult to convince people to come forward as prosecution witnesses in crime cases and also in instances of search and seizure. The police was also conducting a theft prevention awareness programme at the resident association level.

Downtrend in burglaries

The Commissioner said that housebreaks and burglaries in the city have come down significantly following a series of crime busts by the police. The most significant bust was the detection of a 30-member gang of highly professional burglars headed by one Murugan, a resident of Tamil Nadu, by the city police in early January.

During a late night combing operation, the Poonthura police had detained and questioned a youth found in suspicious circumstances. He confessed to be part of a 30-member gang of predominantly Tamil Nadu residents who had been operating in different areas of the city for the past one month.

On his lead, police arrested nearly 10 members of the gang in a single swoop from various lodges in Thampanoor.

A manhunt was on for the elusive gang leader, Murugan, whose fingerprints were lifted from the scene of several recent burglaries in the city. Mr. Singh said the police have achieved significant success in busting professional thieves specialising in burglaries and housebreaks. However, he said most housebreaks could be prevented if citizens took a little extra caution in insulating their homes from burglary.

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