GUNTUR: In order to make the city crime-free, the Guntur Urban police have initiated an innovative programme to adopt select colonies in the city where the crime rate is high. As a part of it, Guntur Urban SP Arif Hafeez himself conducted a ground-level survey to identify the basic issues in the colonies. He visited Srinivasarao Pet, Nallacheruvu, Nehru Nagar, Old Guntur, Pattabhipuram, Satyanarayana Puram and Pedakakani areas.
During his visit, he interacted with the local people, especially women, and enquired about the problems they were facing. Most of them complained about alcohol consumption in public places in vacant lands, robberies, and lack of proper inspection. So the police adopted the Railway colony in the city as a pilot project.
The SP handed over special duties to Kothapet CI Srinivasulu Reddy and East DSP Seetharamaiah, who increased patrolling, set up CCTV cameras and street lights. They also laid fences in vacant lands to prevent people from gathering there and carrying out any illegal activities.
A WhatsApp group was also made with all the local people, and local CI, DSP, and SP. Residents would message their issues in the group and the police would then take immediate action to resolve them. Later, when the SP visited the area to inspect the improvements, people expressed that after several years, they were feeling secure in the area and living without any fear. Similar changes are being made in Satyanarayana Puram under Pattabhipuram police station limits.
Arif Hafeez told TNIE that the intention was to make Guntur into a crime-free city. “We decided to adopt the most problematic regions in the city. The initiative has brought positive changes to Railpet. So, we will adopt Swarnabharathi Nagar, another area where people are suffering from similar issues,’’ he added. He also said stern action will be taken against those who cause inconvenience to common people and involve in any kind of illegal activities.