KOCHI: Though it started as a provision for senior citizens who live alone to get assistance during the lockdown, the Prasanthi Helpline of the Janamaithri wing of the Kerala Police has been lending a helping hand to everyone in need—underprivileged children to helpless mothers beyond state borders. TNIE speaks to its spearheaders about their experiences.
Three months into its functioning, the Prasanthi helpline, started under the Janamaitrhi wing of Kerala Police to assist senior citizens, received a distress call from a young mother.
The woman, a native of Kerala, was calling from Bengaluru, seeking protection for her and her child, from a neglectful and infidel husband. The call was peculiar on twocounts. It was neither from an elderly person, nor from within the state. But soon, the officers involved with the initiative realised it was not an isolated incident.
Launched in April, about a month after the announcement of the national lockdown, the helpline number sought to cater to elderly residents of the state who are living by themselves, and need medical attention or were unable to venture out for essential materials.
Apart from logistical support, Prasanthi also aimed to provide free counselling to the elderly. Recently, they also started keeping track of the wellbeing of elderly citizens by calling them on a daily basis. “We call 20 seniors per day. If a call is not attended on the second attempt, a beat officer is dispatched to the locality to enquire about the condition. Once we came to know that a man was put in an old- age home. Steps were taken to rehabilitate him,” said an officer involved with the project.
How Prasanthi works
Conceived by additional director general of police B Sandhya, the 24x7 helpline with two lines is manned by four female officers who work in 12-hour shifts. Once a complaint or request for assistance is made, the operators direct the call with all necessary details to the concerned district nodal officer, who in turn refers the case to the beat officer at the police station nearest to the plaintiff. The beat officer is given the responsibility of redressing the matter. Counselling is provided by a coordinator.
Academical aid
The beginning of the new academic year in June, with a first-its-kind online school curriculum in place, expanded the purview of Prasanthi further. With the new education system bringing a fresh set of challenges, one of the most important ones being the inability of students in remote areas to attend online classes, the helpline redirected its efforts to aid students in need.
“After the incident of a Class X student from Malappuram dying by suicide came to light, the state police chief directed that the helpline should focus on helping school kids. We collaborated with beat officers across police stations to redress issues on ground. These officers facilitated sponsorships to buy gadgets and handed them over to families. In some cases, the policemen chipped in themselves,” said an officer with the helpline.
No complaint too small
The 24x7 helpline, which received anywhere between 40 and 50 calls per day during the two months of the lockdown, has so far assisted close to 3,000 senior citizens with various appeals. While the initiative was well received among the geriatric community, word-of-mouth publicity resulted in people from all walks of life calling the two designated numbers to seek assistance and support. “Prasanthi has received calls that range from neglect to requesting assistance in various matters and even enquiries about ailments not related to Covid-19. In fact, the first call we received was from an old man complained that he could not sleep peacefully because of mosquitoes.
We thought it was a ridiculous complaint but he informed us that there was rampant breeding of mosquitoes in the area around a pile of logs dumped in the vicinity, which began rotting due to the rain. Our officers took care of it. In our observation, people reluctant to seek help from the police or those unaware of whom to consult for an issue have been using the helpline,” said S Sreejith, Inspector General of Police.