Even as they battle it out everyday on the ground to combat the spread of COVID-19, the deepening global pandemic is bringing about unprecedented changes in the functioning of the police department as well.
Aimed at minimising the risk of disease transmission during personal interactions, G. Jaidev, District Police Chief of Kottayam, has now begun reaching out to the complainants through video conferencing. Under the new system, the official will receive complaints over video-conferencing sessions, give directions to officers, and forward petitions to the sections concerned.
Officials said the office of the DPC would verify the petitions received by Mr. Jaidev on a daily basis. Depending on the gravity of issues, the complainants would be put across to the senior cop through video conferencing so that they could directly interact with the officer without actually going to his office.
According to them, Mr. Jaidev used to meet anywhere between 25 and 30 complainants on a daily basis and in the changed scenario, meeting them all in person was not a practical option. The arrangement would be in place till the situation improves.
“Post the lockdown, there has been a considerable fall in the number of people approaching the DPC directly. However, there are still some who travel from far away places only to have a face-to-face interaction with the official at his chamber even after submitting a detailed petition,” said an official.
People who look to interact online with the DPC would have to submit their complaints to the official’s email id (spktym.pol @kerala.gov.in). Upon verifying the complaint, the department will get back to the petitioner and schedule the online meeting accordingly.
Commenting on the initiative, Mr. Jaidev said the initiative was launched primarily in view of the restrictions on public transport. “While the usual avenue of meeting at my chamber still exists, the use of technology will enhance public access to the office during this period of restricted travel. Considering that this can help reach a much larger audience, we are dovetailing this to the routine complaint redressal system,” he said.