Police informers refuse to accept banned notes in Kolkata
Police sources or informers are declining to accept the banned Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 currency notes. As a result, cops across the state have landed in trouble.
The ripples of a nationwide currency fiasco have now reached the police stations.
Police sources or informers are declining to accept the banned Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 currency notes. As a result, cops across the state have landed in trouble.
Cops are now trying to change notes through banks in order to ensure that their daily work is not hampered.
“It is not a problem in the state. All police stations across the country are suffering. I am receiving at least two to three complaints from the in-charge of my district police stations. The cops say they are not being able to catch criminals just for want of money as their source is not accepting old notes,” said a police superintendent working at Janglamahal area.
Despite being dependent on technology support, the police department is still dependent on human sources, which in their department is known as traditional source.
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In order to get the day-to-day information about the hooligans and other criminals in the area, cops have to depend on their traditional sources.
“For Bengal police, it is disbursed every three months generally through Intelligence Branch (IB) department and it is sent to the police superintendent of the district. The district police chief disburses it to the police stations in his district. The in-charge of the police station uses it according to its need,” said a senior officer of the state police.
But from November 8, the police are in trouble as they cannot pay these sources.
“In my area, I called a source at my police station and after he arrived, I asked him to get details of a criminal who I am looking for. I offered him a Rs 500 note but immediately he refused. He told me that nobody is ready to accept it. Instead, he said that since he knows me for a long time, he would not take money now but will do my work,” said an officer of a police station.
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“At the same time, I also know that next time, he will avoid giving any information to me,” the officer added.
A senior officer of a commiserate said that ops in his area have changed the currency notes.
“The problem is very serious in the Maoist-prone areas where the cops have to stay in touch with their source constantly. We hope that the situation would normalise soon,” a senior state police officer said.
