Odisha DGP Says Not To Shut Police Stations If Staff Catch COVID 19

Cuttack : The state police headquarters on Friday asked the superintendents of police (SPs) not to allow the temporary closure of police stations if the personnel get infected by Covid-19. In a video conference, the director general of police (DGP) Abhay said temporary arrangements should be made on the campus of the affected police stations for the convenience of complainants.
Recently, a number of police stations were shut for some days for sanitization of the buildings. Nearby police stations were asked to receive complaints on behalf of the closed stations.

“If personnel of a police station are infected, there is no need to shut the police station. Such closure of the police stations would not only affect investigation, but would also create problems for complainants. In rural areas, the distance between police stations is quite long. If a police station is shut, the complainant would face inconvenience to travel to another police station to lodge complaint. Besides, the nearby police stations would get extra workload while dealing with cases of the closed police stations,” a senior officer, who attended the meeting, said.

Police stations have been asked to shift their workplace to other structures or staff quarters on the same campus till the disinfection of the affected building is completed. DGP said makeshift tents can also be set up on the premises of the same police station to attend to the visitors. Currently, almost all police stations have installed complaint boxes at their entrances to prevent entry of visitors inside the police stations amid the Covid outbreak.