Bhubaneswar May 3 : Amid steep rise in COVID cases and ahead of the Statewide lockdown from May 5, police districts in Odisha have shifted to phone-based grievance redressal mechanism. “To deal with rapid surge of COVID-19 cases, the ongoing physical appearance for grievance has been discontinued temporarily,” said Berhampur Police on Saturday.
Public grievances will be addressed through mobile numbers/ WhatsApp, it added. For general grievances, citizens can contact officers of the rank of Additional SP. Additional SPs of Investigative Units for Crime against Women (IUCAW) and DSP (Headquarters) of Berhampur police district can be contacted on their respective mobile phone numbers for registration of grievances.
Citizens can share their grievances relating to domestic violence with DSP (IUCAW), Inspector of Human Rights Protection Cell (HRPC) and Mahila police station IICs on their phone numbers in Berhampur police district.
Berhampur police can also be reached on its Twitter handle, Facebook account, dial 112 and on its SP’s closed user group mobile phone number. The entry of citizens has already been restricted in Bhubaneswar and Cuttack as the cities continue to witness a rise in number of new COVID-19 cases.
In the Capital city, people are allowed to visit the reception desk of police stations which are located outside the main police station building.
Cuttack DCP Prateek Singh recently addressed 11 grievance petitions of citizens on WhatsApp helpline number. “I spoke with the petitioners on the helpline number and took steps for disposal of their grievances. We are facilitating the best possible ways to resolve the issues of the public amid challenges posed by COVID-19,” said Singh.
Similarly, Puri police on Sunday launched a 24X7 virtual grievance number-9583190858. “In view of the upcoming lockdown and restrictions on movement of people, we will ensure citizens’ grievances are addressed,” said Puri Police.
DGP Abhay, during his visit to Rourkela, Sambalpur and Jharsuguda districts to review the COVID-19 enforcement measures and the arrangements to implement the lockdown on Sunday emphasized the need to address the grievances of citizens over phone.
“Phone-based grievance redressal system will be enhanced in the police districts of the State to ensure convenience and safety of people and the personnel in view of the second wave of the pandemic. A circular to restrict the movement of the citizens in the police stations will be issued soon,” said a senior officer.