First International Tourist Police Station and Tourist Musem in India.mpg

Aspirations (Fight Against Terrorism)

Terrorism is growing in an alarming condition than ever. To combat terrorism activities in the state, Kochi City Police is conducting an aggressive campaign against terrorism, which lasts for a year. Starting from the grass root level, City Police has started an awareness campaign on New Year 2009 and declared 2009 as Anti Terrorism Year.

Aspirations, a Mega campaign by Kochi City Police against terrorism was started by a Mega Event based on National Integration and urging the needs of an anti Terrorism scenario, celebrities from different walks of life united together for this mega campaign. The show was conducted portraying the ill effects of terrorism in an artistic way, by means of Skits, Dance, Songs, Messages and proclaimed the needs of the union of the Kochiites against this massive disaster. People from all walks of life united together to pray for those who were killed in recent times by terrorism activities. A prayer was held in the presence of lighted candle in the hands of all who were present at the show.

“Be vigilant- Report any susceptive Terrorism Activity”:

This was the campaign slogan of Kochi City Police to make people aware of Terrorism.

An anti Terrorism Toll Free Helpline No. 9656000100 was launched on the day for the public for reporting any suspicious terrorist activity. The people were asked to trust their instincts and pass on information about any unusual activity or behavior to the confidential Anti-Terrorist Hotline number. One phone call could contain a piece of vital information which could help disrupt terrorist planning and save lives. Posters and leaflets against Terrorism proclaiming the ill effects of terrorism was published by Kochi City Police, and distributed among the general public.

A Music Album was also released on the occasion proclaiming the ill effects of terrorism and urging the needs to unite against terrorism, to create a terror free world. This album was later shown in the major residential areas of Kochi City.

Members of the Residential Associations united for the noble cause. Detailed information of the residents of each area was collected by the Residential Association members and handed over to Police from time to time.

There was active support from print and channel media and also from the FM Radios to run the massive campaign advertisements seeking to raise awareness of some of the items/activities which may be needed by, or be of use to, terrorists. Anti Terrorism Campaign Hoardings was put up in the main junctions of the city.

Each month, analysis meetings are conducted with officials and representatives from all sectors of the society for analyzing the status quo of the conditions prevailing in the city and will also discuss of the security measures.

Janamaithri Suraksha Paddhathi ( Ensure Safety and Security of the Community with active co-operation of Public)

Statistics pointed out that Kochi City topped the list of number of cognizable crime recorded under the Special and Local Law (SLL). In 2006, the number of cases recorded under the SLL in the city was 10,557, compared to other neighboring districts.

For tackling this, a new initiative which is being introduced state level was first implemented in Kochi city. The project is named Janamaithri Suraksha Paddhathi

This project has the security of the community as its prime objective and the effort of the department would be to achieve this with people’s participation and closer liaison between the police and the general public.

This project has been implemented in four police stations in Kochi City i.e Palarivattom Police Station, Kadavanthra Police station, Fort Kochi Police Station and Hill palace police station .

Specially trained beat officers were posted in these police stations. Each beat officer is covering 500 houses or three square kilometre area, whichever is less, on a regular basis and is in touch with each home under their jurisdiction.

The beat officer is leading night patrolling in the locality with people’s participation, coordinating with the private security guards in the area, identifying and keeping a track of strangers visiting the locality, helping to prevent drug peddling and atrocities on women and is also offering protection to the elderly. Each beat officer has been given a motorbike and a mobile phone.

Problems, that cannot be solved at the level of the beat officer is referred to the higher officers at the local police station or SHOs. Popular committees, with an approximate membership of 10, have been formed in each police station limits. The committees will be playing the role of facilitators and will not have any role in maintenance of law and order. The progress of the scheme is being reviewed every three months.

Apart from. this Janamythri Ambulance service for the accident victims/medical emergencies, free houses for the poor, free uniform and school bags for the children, free medical camp was also launched as a part of community policing.

JANAMITHRI AMBULANCE & SEWING MECHINS

Police-Manpower Association Action Programme

This is one of the most unique schemes to check visa cheating cases which used to be rampant in Kochi City. Under this scheme an action group was formed by the police and the Manpower Exporters’ Association to check fake overseas recruitment and this includes the Protector of Emigrants (PoE). Since the formation of the action group, the number of

cheating cases registered in connection with fake overseas recruitment has come down 70 per cent. By including the PoE, the Police were able to effectively coordinate all aspects regarding overseas recruitment and check instances of cheating right at the beginning. The group has the Commissioner of Police as chairman. Earlier, the police acted only on receiving cases of cheating. Now, we can impart awareness among the public regarding overseas recruitment and also crosscheck genuineness of the claims made by recruiting agencies. The new action group meets every month and review the work. At the same time, the group members will be in constant touch. Whenever a case is reported, it is referred to the group for further action. This saves time in processing

cases, especially those involving foreign recruitment agencies. Whereas the official channel will take much time to crosscheck the credentials of these agencies, the group members can contact their counterparts in respective countries and verify facts in no time. The action group was reconstituted with a view to sorting out issues faced by manpower exporters. “The action group has effectively sorted out more than 200 cases and that is one main reason in the sharp decline in the number of cases.

The programme has been a major success in ensuring a good image on police among the public. The Positive image earned by the Police will be further strengthened and the objective of making the police force more community oriented and bringing the policing to the doorsteps of the public can be strengthened by such a campaign.

Foriegners Welfare Scheme

Kochi City is the major hub of tourists and the commercial capital of Kerala and so is a host to the maximum member of Foreign Nationals from around the globe, for a variety of reasons such as Tourism, Business, Medical Treatment, Education, Employment etc. Due to this fact, the City Police has devised a special scheme under the “PRIDE” Programme for the welfare of Foreigners visiting the City. The programme was implemented with the active cooperation and participation of the Hoteliers Association of Kochi. The major steps implemented under the scheme are as follows.

• Distribution of pamphlet notices to the Foreign Nationals at the Airport itself on various rules and regulations regarding Visa/Registration etc.
• Establishment of police Aid Post at the Airport and Medical College to aid the Foriegners in sorting out the various problems of hire charges and exorbitant medical fees.
• The Police Tourist Cell to provide information on various aspects such as places of lodging, correct Hotel rates, standard rates on medical treatment etc.
• The Police Cell to perform as a complaint redressal forum were the Forigners can also submit the petitions on various aspects to the police, which would be disposed on a war footing.
• Establishment of a direct fax and Email service with the Special Branch and various Hotels for immediate transfer of information on C forms and other registration matters related to Foreigners.
• All these steps has ensured that the Foreign Nationals who come to Kochi City get a more safer and secure atmosphere, while they are in City and also their welfare in various aspects is ensured. The police also on the other hand get all the information on the foreigners visiting the City, so that the general security of the place is not compromise.

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Police Security Agencies Coordination Scheme

Another scheme that was implemented by Kochi City Police was the “Police security Agency Co-ordination Scheme” It is a scheme, enlisting the support of various Security and Detective Agencies to assist the police in crime prevention and also to provide information to the Police on crime related matters. There are many security agencies functioning in Kochi City which are providing security personnel ( Ex-service men or otherwise trained personnel) who are put on security duties in various ATMs, Banks, Shopping Establishments, Flats, Companies, Personal Protection, Shops etc. It is established that around 8000 such security personnel are presently functioning in the City. To tap this huge source of trained security personnel and to ensure their assistance to the police in the discharge of their duties, we constituted a co-ordination Committee of various heads of Security and Detective Agencies working in Kochi City chaired by the Commissioner of Police, with a primary responsibility of co-ordination among the Security Agencies. It was ensured by the Committee that the security personnel engaged by them and working in vari

ous banks/ATMs, will henceforth function in close co-ordination with the police at the station level. A special training was organized for the security personnel by the police to make them more aware of their duties and also for better co-ordination with the police department. The sphere of responsibility of these security personnel which was limited to their establishment alone was increased to the premises and the general neighborhood around them. The Security Personnel are now functioning as the eyes and ears of the police force and pass on the necessary information to policemen in case they come to know of any such crimes and criminals. The programme evoked a massive response from all the Security Agencies which has ensured that these 8000 strong Security Personnel fully support the City Police in Crime Prevention, within the City.

Suvarnavarsham – (An Awareness Campagin)

“Suvarna Varsham,” a weeklong exhibition to mark the 50th anniversary of the Kerala Police was held at Kochi City. The exhibition showcased the development of the force over the past 50 years, as captured in the changes in uniform of the personnel. Along with displaying 35 types of uniforms worn by policemen, starting with those from the erstwhile Travancore era, coming up for the exhibition are police weapons, riot-control equipment, scientific aids to investigation, telecommunications, security gadgets, forensic science laboratory, forensic medicine and equipment to deal with cyber crimes. This community policing initiative by the city police helped the force to reach out to the public.