JOIN USWomen's safety, traffic solution high on new top cop's agenda
The city’s new police commissioner, Praveen Sood, who took office on New Year’s Day, has lined up his priorities: ensuring safety of women, children and senior citizens, easing traffic congestion, introducing SMS updates on FIRs, harnessing social media to bring police closer to the public and expediting the police verification process for passports.
Addressing his first press conference as Bengaluru’s top cop, Sood said, “Our topmost priority is the safety of women, children and senior citizens. We will strive hard to ensure they feel safe and secure. Traffic is another important factor that needs attention.”
He warned of crackdown on anti-social elements and said a meeting with senior police officers would be held soon to suggest quick measures to check crimes and other illegal activities. He also promised citizen-centric measures. “Several initiatives are already in place. We’ll enforce them more effectively. People should not shy away from filing complaints as that will help us check crimes,” he said.
Asked about the involvement of several policemen in criminal activities recently, Sood said, “The previous commissioner (N S Megharikh) did an excellent job by terminating such people from service. Such kind of behaviour will not be tolerated.”
Traffic solutions
Sood has promised to instruct traffic police not to flag down vehicles for checking motorists’ driving licence and other documents. “Motorists will be stopped only when they commit an offence or drive drunk. They would do well to follow lane discipline and traffic rules.” Sood, who was Bengaluru’s additional commissioner of police (traffic and security) from 2008 to February 2011, has promised better traffic management.
SMS updates on FIRs
The top cop acknowledged the inconvenience faced by the public in getting updates on FIRs. “It’s true that a complainant has to frequently visit the police station to get an update on their FIR or complaint. They set aside their personal work to visit the police station and end up wasting precious time. We will introduce a system under which once an FIR is registered, the complainant will get an instant SMS. They will also get text messages on the status of the FIRs. This will also help us as we can focus on investigation and the related matters,” Sood explained.
Harnessing social media
Sood also emphasised the use of technology in policing. “The Bengaluru police are a role model for law-enforcement forces of other states in using social media like Twitter, Facebook and WhatsApp. We will keep using these platforms extensively to bring the public and police closer. With criminals also going tech-savvy, we need to be one step ahead of them,” he said.
Passport verification
The police commissioner said his target was to reduce the passport verification time to 15 days. “For now, our target is 15 days and we plan to bring it down to 10 days. If an applicant is not available on weekdays, they have to visit the police station in a given time. If they are still not available, we’ll send their documents to the department concerned. We do not want any pendency,” he said.