Pimpri-Chinchwad police revive ‘Buddy Cop’ initiative following murder of woman techie
The “Buddy Cop” initiative is a community policing programme designed for better communication and collaboration between police departments and the local community
Pune: The murder of a woman techie in Hinjewadi has impelled the Pimpri-Chinchwad police to restart the “Buddy Cop” initiative aimed at enhancing safety and security of IT professionals. The move comes as a proactive measure to address the concerns and challenges faced by techies in the region.
The “Buddy Cop” initiative is a community policing programme designed for better communication and collaboration between police departments and the local community, particularly addressing the safety needs of specific groups such as IT professionals. The programme involves assigning police officers as “buddy cops” to establish direct lines of communication with residents, creating a sense of trust and familiarity.
Pune city police had launched the “Buddy Cop” initiative in 2017 under the then police commissioner Rashmi Shukla after a software engineer was found murdered at the company premises in Hinjewadi IT Park. Later, it had to be discontinued during the Covid pandemic.
The decision to revive the initiative starting with Hinjewadi area was prompted by the recent murder of 26-year-old woman techie Vandana Dwivedi.
Vinoy Kumar Choubey, Pimpri-Chinchwad police commissioner, said, “While the murder was a fallout of personal reasons, we have decided to resume ‘Buddy Cops’ and other initiatives like ‘Police Kaka/ Police Didi’ which were halted due to the Covid pandemic as a step aimed at bolstering the safety of residents.”
Choubey said that police patrolling will be increased in these areas.
“We are planning to conduct meetings with IT companies to sensitise them. We appeal to people, specifically women IT professionals, to approach the nearest police station without hesitation to register complaint,” he said.
Pavanjeet Mane, president, FITE (Forum for Information Technology Employees) Maharashtra, said, “We welcome such proactive policing initiatives but there should be consistent implementation of such programmes. We have seen that as soon as a senior police officer changes, some drives become inactive.”
Mane said that in addition to such initiatives, the inspector of respective police stations should display personal mobile and WhatsApp number at the notice board of firms falling under its jurisdiction.
Abhilasha Chandrashekhar from Wakad area of Pimpri-Chinchwad and working at a private IT company said, “In fact, ‘Buddy Cop’ is a good initiative for me and my friends used during many emergencies before it was discontinued due to the Covid pandemic. It is good to hear that police are restarting it.”
Jaywant Deshpande from Warje-Malwadi working as a software engineer at HCL Tech said, “IT sector is the only sector where women employees are working in large numbers as compared to others. And there should be special provision for the safety and security of women staff. Such community policing initiatives are good. But many times women employees hesitate to come forward to lodge complaints. Hence, there should be something like a panic button in your mobile, after pressing the button the police get notification with location.”
What is ‘Buddy Cop’
Under the initiative, a designated officer is appointed at each police station, along with a team of 10-15 police personnel. They have given responsibility to monitor WhatsApp groups, 100 women representing local areas and senior officers.
The staff need to address a complaint raised by woman in a group. The primary objective of the scheme is to ensure round-the-clock response to women’s grievances while simultaneously raising awareness about the significance of reporting complaints against individuals who engage in inappropriate behaviour or harassment.