JOIN USCops start issuing curfew passes
About 20,000 policemen are out on the streets of Bengaluru to enforce the 21-day lockdown declared by the government. The main challenge is to keep people off the roads while also ensuring there is no humanitarian crisis.
Police Commissioner Bhaskar Rao told Metrolife, “We held a meeting on Wednesday with over 300 food and medicine aggregators. We will issue passes on the basis of Aadhaar cards and request letters.”
Passes are being issued offline at the moment, but the police plan to take it online soon. They are also considering giving out transferable passes for people and vehicles.
Not everyone understands what the system is all about though. Rao says he got a call from someone who runs an export business asking for 21,000 passes. “That is not the idea. People also called in asking for passes to go and feed pigeons and stray dogs. How can we entertain such queries?” he says.
Home inspection
Police are using a list of places where people tested positive for Covid-19 are quarantined.
Divya Sara Thomas, deputy commissioner of police, City Armed Reserve, is in charge of coordinating the movement of essential services across Karnataka. “We have been noticing that most delivery boys are moving around without wearing the company uniform,” she says. Passes will be issued for essential services and it is mandatory to carry ID cards, passes and Aadhaar cards, she says. And delivery services should operate at minimum capacity.
Food packets
In many areas, police are delivering food packets to the homeless and the needy. “Some voluntary organisations provide essential services. When we are on our rounds, we drop off food packets. Providing food for the needy is our priority,” says Kuldeep Kumar R Jain, DCP Crime.
Round the clock
B R Ravikanthe Gowda, joint commissioner of police (Traffic), says 4,000 traffic police personnel are working in three shifts. “We normally work in two shifts but we have now added an additional shift. We have barricaded all major roads and are making sure people stay away,” he says. Forty-four inspectors and 200-odd sub-inspectors have been provided with public address systems. “Our inspectors are patrolling the streets and making public announcements about the importance of following lockdown rules,” he says. Police are also guarding the city borders to make sure nobody violates quarantine norms.
What law says
Jail term for quarantine violators may extend to six months, with or without a fine.
Sections 51 to 60 of the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) deal with obstructing government servants in performing their duties, making false claims while seeking any relief, misappropriation of money or goods, and creating false alarm. It also covers government servants failing to follow guidelines and companies violating orders.
Greedy shops watch out
The BBMP will act against establishments selling items over and above MRP rates. “If we receive complaints, we can cancel trade licences under the Essential Commodities Act,” says a senior BBMP official.
Passes will be issued to
- Print and electronic media persons
- Staff working for ration or grocery shops
- Dairy, meat and fish shops and animal fodder shops
- Staff of medical establishments such as hospitals clinics dispensaries nursing homes laboratories ambulance services etc
- Staff of telecom and internet services IT and IT-enabled services
- Employees who work for essential services
- Employees of power generation transmission and distribution unit
- Staff of capital and debt market services
- Employees of cold storage and warehousing services
- Staff of manufacturing units of essential commodities
- Staff working for transportation of essential goods
- Staff of hotels and lodges which accommodating tourists stranded due to COVID-19
- Private security guards
- Petrol, gas and LPG retail employees
- Banks, ATM and insurance company employees
- Delivery agents of food aggregator services like Swiggy and Zomato
- Online pharmaceutical companies
- E-commerce platforms like Amazon and Flipkart
Passes will not be issued
- For government vehicles with ‘G’ registration plates
- Goods vehicles
- Employees of government departments
- Employees of High Court all government and High Court staff to compulsorily carry their ID card
Names and contact numbers of DCP offices where passes are available
Dr Chetan Singh Rathore
Deputy Commissioner of police Central division
Contact number: 2220 0907 or 2294 2344.
Dr S D Sharanappa
Deputy Commissioner of police East division
Contact number: 2556 7085 or 2294 2312.
B Ramesh
Deputy Commissioner of police West division
Contact number: 2237 0195 or 2294 2356
N Shashikumar
Deputy Commissioner of police North division
Contact number: 2356 7714 or 2294 2299
Rohini Katoch Sepat
Deputy Commissioner of police South division
Contact number: 2356 7714 or 2294 2299
Joshi Srinath Mahadev
Deputy Commissioner of police South East division
Contact number: 2553 0284 or 2294 3465
Dr Bheemshankar S Guled
Deputy Commissioner of Police North East division
Contact number: 2363 2002 or 2294 3676.
M N Anucheth
Deputy Commissioner of Police, Whitefield division
Contact number: 2522 3022 or 2294 2852
Emergency numbers
To report quarantine violations call 91541 53916.
Police control room 100 and 112 for passes.