‘Senior cops to remain on duty between 10pm-2am'

Following the alleged gang-rape of a 17-year-old girl at Aastha Kunj Park, Delhi Police commissioner Anurag Kumar has directed that one of the three deputy and additional deputy commissioners of police (DCP/add’l DCP) in each of the city’s 15 districts remain on duty from 10pm to 2am every night to conduct foot and vehicle patrolling, senior police officers said on Thursday.

To be sure, each police district has one DCP and two additional DCPs.

The commissioner has also directed police officers to conduct confidence-building exercises in schools, colleges and other educational institutions, as well as public places such as parks and markets. Personnel have been asked to interact with students, women, girls and elderly citizens and encourage them to approach the police for assistance, officials said.

“The DCP on night duty will lead foot-patrolling teams and monitor incidents requiring police intervention. Police will also focus on the “Roko-Toko” strategy, under which personnel stop, question and check suspicious people and vehicles. Officers will question suspected troublemakers found in parks or isolated areas during late hours,” a senior officer said.

Two DCP-rank officers, one each for zone 1 (northern) and zone 2 (southern), are also deployed every night as night gazetted officers (GOs) to patrol the city and respond to crimes, accidents and other incidents. One assistant commissioner of police (ACP)-rank night GO is similarly deployed in each district, officials said.

A senior officer said that other police units have also been asked to join the patrolling and area-dominance exercise. Personnel deployed in police control room (PCR) vans have been directed to remain mobile rather than stay at designated bases when not responding to distress calls, except those deployed at vital installations or on VVIP security duty.

“PCR teams have been asked to patrol crime hotspots and dark and isolated areas, while keeping their flashlights and sirens on. They have also been directed to identify non-functional street lights and CCTV cameras and submit daily reports to police headquarters,” said the senior officer.

“Additionally, Jhansi all-women patrolling squads, operating on pink scooters, are also conducting patrolling in vulnerable areas, including parks, roads and markets, to increase the visibility of women personnel and boost confidence among women using public spaces, officers said.