The Hindu : Kerala / Thiruvananthapuram News : More ‘beat officers’ sought for residential areas

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Kerala - Thiruvananthapuram

More ‘beat officers’ sought for residential areas

Staff Reporter

Police officers told to respond quickly to distress calls

250 vacancies in the city police constabulary will be filled in June
Consumption of alcohol in vehicles rampant in Vanchiyoor area

Thiruvananthapuram: Lack of policemen and vehicles could derail joint night patrolling by citizens and law enforcers in the city, according to office-bearers of residents’ associations.

Interacting with City Police Commissioner Ravada Azad Chandrasekhar here on Saturday, a resident said motorbikes and vans allotted to police stations were in a rundown condition. Policemen were overworked and only a few were

available for night patrolling. Motorbikes with corroding petrol tanks and vans lacking headlights, indicators and windshield wipers were the curse of the city police.

More policemen should be allocated as ‘beat officers’ to cover residential areas.

Mr. Chandrasekhar said 250 vacancies in the city police constabulary will be filled in June and the lack of infrastructure would be addressed soon.

Failure on the part of authorities to highlight medians and speed-breakers with reflectors or white paint was causing accidents at night. Large television screen-type advertisement boards placed high above buildings at busy junctions were proving to be a traffic distraction.

Criminals were using helmets and vehicles with dark tinted glasses for their operations.

The Commissioner said there was a 15 per cent dip in road accident deaths in the city because of increased helmet and seat belt usage.

Residents said the police should check the condition of trucks ferrying elephants from one destination to another. Auto rickshaw drivers were overcharging citizens and private bus operators were not observing timings.

Some private bus operators operated well beyond the route allotted to them, thereby depriving the Kerala State Road Transport Corporation of legitimate revenue. Private buses also operated well above the prescribed speed limit, particularly in the vicinity of educational institutions and busy junctions.

The traffic signal lights in front of the Government Secretariat were not working.

The Commissioner asked his officers to respond quickly to distress calls from citizens. Delayed response would be viewed as dereliction of duty, he said.

Traffic congestion

Haphazard parking of vehicles in front of marriage halls was causing traffic snarls in the city; distressingly so on working days and during rush hours. The traffic congestion in front of the Regional Passport Office (which serves people from three districts) at Kaithamukku could be resolved by diverting vehicles to the wide Thengapura lane for parking.

Advertisement hoardings on medians and traffic islands were impeding the vision of motorists. Corroded metal stems of discarded traffic sign boards were proving hazardous to pedestrians at Sreekaryam.

The police should prevent the piling of construction material on the side of the busy Ambalamukku-Peroorkada road. Residents demanded that a traffic warden be posted at Kuravankonam junction. Over-speeding of parallel service

vehicles was endangering the safety of road users, chiefly girl students, at Kaimanam Women’s College junction.

The streetlights at East Fort, particularly those in front of the Attakulangara school, were not working. There should be better street-lighting at Eenchakkal junction. Consumption of alcohol in vehicles was rampant in the Vanchiyoor area.

Foreign guests

House and flat owners accommodating foreigners, mainly Maldivian citizens, were not informing the police about the particulars of their guests. The police should insist that they file ‘C-Forms’ promptly. Truck drivers should cover the cargo-hold of their vehicles with tarpaulin while ferrying construction material.

Threat to citizens

Anti-social elements were posing a threat to citizens at Marapallam, Nemom and Pappanamcode. Residents said they found the "body language" of the youth threatening and suspected that they were addicted to narcotic drugs. A similar anti-social group was operating at Ananthanagar near Karamana.

The police should ensure door-to-door salesmen carry properly authenticated identity cards and that they do not ‘barge’ into houses.

Residents asked the police to clear footpaths of vendors.

Deputy Commissioner Somnatha Pillai, Assistant Commissioners K. Ramachandran, Ramesh Kumar, Suresh Kumar and K.C. Sasikumar were present.

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