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IN DISTRESS: In the absence of a traffic constabulary, R9 Police Station at Valasaravakkam is under crunch to deliver the goods. Photo: K Vijay Anand

        Rising traffic, shortage of personnel and distractions from the prime duty of crime prevention have all had adverse impact on R9 Police Station at Valasaravakkam.

        Given a jurisdiction spread over 50 km, this station finds more and more of its head constables, both in Crime and Law & Order, being absorbed in duties that are not related to them at all — like road patrols, bandobust and regulating flow of vehicles in rush hours.

        Only two years ago, R9 station was carved out of Chengai East range and merged with Greater Chennai Police. 'Now, the crime rate has gone down in this vast area after the station came under the control of Commissioner of Police (CoP) office. But still we operate over a huge area covering Maduravoyal in the North, SRMC varsity in West, Nandambakkam in South and Virugambakkam to the East. It is really impossible to man this area by a 48-strong police force at this R9,' explains S Kanniappan, Sub-Inspector, Law & Order. There are still 19 vacancies to be filled up at the police station as the sanctioned force is 67, including officers.

        But he quickens to add, 'nearly 30 head constables of L&O work in three shifts daily for active patrolling of areas for crime prevention and they intervene in civil disputes too.' Within the team, the personnel have to voluntarily take up traffic duties in coordination. Of late, rising problems on the traffic front had diverted most of the time and energy of R9 Police, resulting in very little time for crime prevention, detection and in detailed probe of a range of petty thefts like chain snatching and house break-ins.

        As against 31 L&O constables, the Crime wing has got just a measly 4 personnel to do night and day patrols. 'We definitely need at least 20 more constables in Crime for effective patrolling in all the three shifts. Also, more police at the field level at R9 will improve our work efficiency through a wide network in city outskirts,' says V Gopal, head constable, Crime at R9 station.

        Drawing a better picture, R Natesan, Crime Inspector, R9 station, explains, 'almost 75 per cent of manpower here is being wasted on traffic duty which should be avoided. On each road junctions 2 or 3 constables have to be posted for regulating traffic which is not their duty in the first place.' If a traffic wing is accorded to R9 station, 'our field staff will focus on crime prevention, which is vital, by going deep into the interiors of our vast jurisdiction.'

        When queried over these issues, V Sethu, Assistant Commissioner, Vadapalani Police Station, informs reports were sent to Joint Commissioners for both Law & Order and Traffic on the need for an exclusive wing for traffic constabulary. 'The request is under process as part of a larger study to provide such facilities for those districts annexed from Chengai East range.'

        As regards the current set of woes faced by R9 personnel, Sunil Kumar, JC, Traffic, says, 'beat marshalls from R8 Vadapalani have an extended ring of jurisdiction in traffic management and they have to patrol the roads during peak hours till Porur.'

        With explosive growth of human settlements on all sides of Western suburbs in which Valsaravakkam is entrenched, unreported crimes have also been on the rise.

        Will the CoP office look into this grave issue and take action to strengthen the force at R9 Police Station in Valasaravakkam?
 

To be shifted         One poromboke land has been identified near Alwarthirunagar and a letter had been sent to Tiruvallur Collector for allocating that piece of real estate for a new building to be constructed for R9 Valasaravakkam Police Station.         The Collector has forwarded the request to Commissioner for Revenue Administration at Chepauk, the deciding authority. Once the project is sanctioned, TN Police Housing Corporation will be approached for building fund to construct a multistoried complex for R9 with latest facilities, according to police sources.