KOLKATA: As many as 14,000 cops on road, 886 arrests in 10 hours, more than 552 prosecuted for not wearing masks properly and sanitization of over 50 markets... On Thursday, both Kolkata and Bidhannagar police, along with Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC), pulled out all stops to break the chain of the deadly virus in the city and its suburbs.
The cops hit the streets by 5.45am — setting up nakas, sealing the entry points and introducing the combat forces to patrol the city — to make the most of the total lockdown. The KMC, which got a real chance to start working from early morning, sanitized almost 50 odd markets, along with five major wholesale points, across the city. “We had eyed major markets. We could successfully complete the sanitization drive in the densely populated areas because of the lockdown. We have covered also markets in the containment zones,” a KMC official in the solid waste management department said.
On Thursday, the cops, too, put special emphasis on the markets. They were present in most of the 56 markets that were chosen for sanitization. Local police were asked to visit neighbourhood markets and put out a status report every two hours. Extra forces were deployed with each police division and an additional DC was assigned to each division to tackle specific complaints of lockdown violations. “We want to cover more areas that need to show some more signs of improvement. We are working on it for Saturday,” said an IPS officer at Lalbazar.
Besides sanitization, the KMC health department utilized the opportunity for a massive swab test drive in some of the worst containment areas. Most importantly, both KMC and police on Thursday claimed they managed to carry out maximum swab tests in the city. The mobile testing vans helped them target some of the worst-hit Covid zones like Bhowanipore-Ballygunge, Jodhpur Park-Jadavpur, Behala, Maniktala-Phoolbagan and Kankurgachhi-Ultadanga belts. “The demand for a swab test was at its peak with several ward coordinators called up for group swab tests in their zones. We were not prepared for such an overwhelming response from the KMC ward coordinators. We could reach many places and conduct swab tests successfully,” said a KMC health department official. The civic body’s health department will conduct more swab tests from now at regular intervals, KMC sources confirmed.
Besides the main control room, police used three other mini-control rooms to keep track of what was going on in the road. Extra CCTV cameras were deployed at strategic locations. Each police station set up nakas — there were 51 major points covering the entry and exits to the city. “The instruction was clear. You have to show a valid ID or e-pass to make it through. Any vehicle owner who could not produce a valid document was told that he will be sent a notice explaining their act. The CCTVs and drones were monitored to check vehicular movement and trace violators,” an officer said.
Meanwhile, Bidhannagar police commissioner Mukesh Kumar toured the entire police commissionerate area with a team of senior officers from 10am till 8pm, focusing on major areas — from where reports of violation poured in earlier — and areas under emergency service like Kolkata airport.
The commissioner and his team visited multiple lanes and alleys in areas like Kestopur, Jagatpur, Baguiati, New Town, Hatiara, Narayanpur and multiple pockets in Rajarhat and Salt Lake.
“We also worked in coordination with Kolkata Police to ensure a smooth passage for vehicles on emergency duty. We had provided cell phone numbers of multiple police officers of the traffic department where drivers had called through the day whenever they were stopped on the road and were later let go after our intervention,” said a senior officer of Bidhannagar commissionerate.
(With inputs from Tamaghna Banerjee)
The cops hit the streets by 5.45am — setting up nakas, sealing the entry points and introducing the combat forces to patrol the city — to make the most of the total lockdown. The KMC, which got a real chance to start working from early morning, sanitized almost 50 odd markets, along with five major wholesale points, across the city. “We had eyed major markets. We could successfully complete the sanitization drive in the densely populated areas because of the lockdown. We have covered also markets in the containment zones,” a KMC official in the solid waste management department said.
On Thursday, the cops, too, put special emphasis on the markets. They were present in most of the 56 markets that were chosen for sanitization. Local police were asked to visit neighbourhood markets and put out a status report every two hours. Extra forces were deployed with each police division and an additional DC was assigned to each division to tackle specific complaints of lockdown violations. “We want to cover more areas that need to show some more signs of improvement. We are working on it for Saturday,” said an IPS officer at Lalbazar.
Besides sanitization, the KMC health department utilized the opportunity for a massive swab test drive in some of the worst containment areas. Most importantly, both KMC and police on Thursday claimed they managed to carry out maximum swab tests in the city. The mobile testing vans helped them target some of the worst-hit Covid zones like Bhowanipore-Ballygunge, Jodhpur Park-Jadavpur, Behala, Maniktala-Phoolbagan and Kankurgachhi-Ultadanga belts. “The demand for a swab test was at its peak with several ward coordinators called up for group swab tests in their zones. We were not prepared for such an overwhelming response from the KMC ward coordinators. We could reach many places and conduct swab tests successfully,” said a KMC health department official. The civic body’s health department will conduct more swab tests from now at regular intervals, KMC sources confirmed.
Besides the main control room, police used three other mini-control rooms to keep track of what was going on in the road. Extra CCTV cameras were deployed at strategic locations. Each police station set up nakas — there were 51 major points covering the entry and exits to the city. “The instruction was clear. You have to show a valid ID or e-pass to make it through. Any vehicle owner who could not produce a valid document was told that he will be sent a notice explaining their act. The CCTVs and drones were monitored to check vehicular movement and trace violators,” an officer said.
Meanwhile, Bidhannagar police commissioner Mukesh Kumar toured the entire police commissionerate area with a team of senior officers from 10am till 8pm, focusing on major areas — from where reports of violation poured in earlier — and areas under emergency service like Kolkata airport.
The commissioner and his team visited multiple lanes and alleys in areas like Kestopur, Jagatpur, Baguiati, New Town, Hatiara, Narayanpur and multiple pockets in Rajarhat and Salt Lake.
“We also worked in coordination with Kolkata Police to ensure a smooth passage for vehicles on emergency duty. We had provided cell phone numbers of multiple police officers of the traffic department where drivers had called through the day whenever they were stopped on the road and were later let go after our intervention,” said a senior officer of Bidhannagar commissionerate.
(With inputs from Tamaghna Banerjee)
Coronavirus outbreak
Trending Topics
LATEST VIDEOS
More from TOI
Navbharat Times
Featured Today in Travel
Get the app