Sporty police dozen to make your festive season safer

Drunks, eve teasers, petty thieves of Ghaziabad, beware! If you try to foul the coming festive fortnight starting Christmas Eve, you’ll get your comeuppance.

Drunks, eve teasers, petty thieves of Ghaziabad, beware! If you try to foul the coming festive fortnight starting Christmas Eve, you’ll get your comeuppance.

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The Ghaziabad police has handpicked 12 men to form an anti-goonda squad who will move in plainclothes in and around crowded areas, looking out for — and dealing with — troublemakers.

All 12 are sportsmen, who have represented the police force in national level events of wrestling, judo, karate, kabbadi and basketball.

“They are all over six feet tall, and well built. They can tackle the bad elements. They will concentrate on girls’ colleges, liquor shops, malls and restaurants,” said Ghaziabad deputy inspector general of police, Akhil Kumar.

“Their job is to respond quickly to distress calls,” Kumar added. “They must evaluate the threat to anyone who calls them on the special numbers we have created. They will have a PCR van at their disposal. They will hand over the bad elements to the nearest police station, where formalities like the FIR will follow.”

“Their prime concern would be to help the women and girls during the festival season before and after the new-year. The squad would be directly accessible to the women on special numbers,” said Circle Officer Happy Gupta, the nodal officer who will monitor the squad’s movements and activities.