A Tata Nano car, donated to the City Police by the Rotary Club of Cochin Downtown, is a testimony to the official apathy to the needs of the police force. After patrolling the city for a couple of days, the ‘Nano Patrol’ as it has been labelled, vanished off the road.
“The Rotary Club officials had come forward with a proposal to buy raincoats for the policemen, worth around Rs. one lakh. So I suggested about getting us a Nano car, which was planned as something in between the romeo or bike patrol and Control Room Vehicle (CRV),” said M.R. Ajith Kumar, City Police Commissioner.
The vehicle had to be taken off the roads as it was not officially inducted to the fleet of the City Police and hence was not eligible for fuel refills. Initially, the police officers paid for the fuel out of their pockets and once the initial enthusiasm waned, there was no option left.
“After we briefed him, Anoop Jacob, Minister for Civil Supplies, promised to look into the issue. A formal request has been placed to include the vehicle into our fleet. This was also required for all the new vehicles allotted for Dy.SP.s,” said the Commissioner.
The Nano Patrol has been mooted as an attempt to increase the visibility of police on the streets.
Also, the vehicle could be handled by just one or two personnel and offenders could easily by moved to the police station, without waiting for support as it happens with motorcycle patrolling parties, it has been pointed out.
In this manner the beat patrolling can be enhanced even during rainy seasons.
“We are working on the lines of having one patrol car in each police station. This, however, can be made viable only after the Nano comes out with a diesel variant,” Mr. Ajith Kumar said.
For the time being, the City Police are waiting for the official nod to try this out on an experimental basis using the car that has been gifted to them.
