Jalpaiguri is known for three Ts- Tea, Timber and Tourism—has made the are a popular and prosperous. The name is possibly originated from the abundant local produce of Jalpai (Olive). The town’s topography is crisscrossed with rivulets and rivers and it is situated close to the hilly region of Darjeeling and neighbouring Sikkim.
Area Profile: Kotwali Police Station of Jalpaiguri has a jurisdictional area of 503.1 Sq.Kms. The area is populated by mostly Bengali, Santhali, Nepali, Marwari and Hindi speaking people. There are 14 Gram Panchayats and a Municipality covering 45 Wards. Tea, paddy, jute, mustard, potato, watermelon and ground nut are grown in the area. The area has a number of tourist attractions – Devi Choudhurani Temple, Bhramri Devi Temple, Jatileshwar Temple, Jalpesh Shrine, PirKalu Sahib Shrine, tea gardens and different spots to watch scenic beauty including sun rise in the Teesta spur and the Teesta barrage. Wildlife in the forest- dominated areas includes Elephants, Barking Deer, Spotted Deer and a number of birds. People are mostly literate. Jalpaiguri Zilla School, Government Girls High School, Fanindra Deb Institution, Sunitibala Sadar Girls School, Holy Child School, Saint Paul’s School, Kendriya Vidyalaya are some of the reputed schools in the town. Ananda Chandra College, P.D.Women’s College, St. Xavier’s College are affiliated to University of North Bengal. Jalpaiguri Polytechnic Institute, Institute of Pharmacy, Jalpaiguri Government Engineering College, Jalpaiguri Law College are institutions for pursuing diploma, degree in engineering and law.
I emphasize on professionalism and no cop should be impatient to hear public grievances. Despite, pressure of this job, I suggest my colleagues to find some time for physical exercise because this can only keep them fit and cheerful. They should also have thorough knowledge about local people and their sentiments. A cop who is a good communicator and always provides people some kind of assistance, naturally earns respect of the society.
Policing: Sevoke being a transit point, it remains busy almost all year round. Heavy traffic of people and goods brings in challenges. The police is ever vigilant to keep eyes on them. Check posts which are setup at various locations have to inspect hundreds of trucks every day to check thorough fare of illegal goods. The Highway Patrol vehicles do their job on the highway stretch which is 80 kms long. The vehicles are fitted with on board cameras. To increase visibility at night and during adverse weather, retroeflective tapes have been put at different spots. Two international borders with Bhutan and Bangladesh possess a key challenge as enormity of trade is conducted annually through them. Apart from them, there is a state border with Assam and a district border with Darjeeling. The jurisdictional area of the Kotwali police station is segregated in to several anchals. The cops hold weekly meetings and Police Assistant Booths at those anchals. There is a designated anchal officer for each anchal, who reports every happening of the anchal to the cops from time to time. This way the cops get the quick raw information from them. The police have the responsibility of checking midday meals at various schools also. They also meet volunteers, employees and doctors of different NGOs those run home and day care centres to get updates on the children. The cops are always connected by official WhatsApp groups by which they stay updated real time.
Beyond Policing: Community policing goes hand in hand with conventional form of policing. Kotwali Police station conducts many community policing programs all year round. Few months back, the station conducted blood donation camp to replenish dwindling stocks of blood banks across the state. 60 units of blood were collected from donors from every walk of life. Safe Drive Save Life rallies and campaigns are also organised from time to time to generate awareness among the public.
By Our Correspondent
