The newly introduced BD Police Help Line visibly started drawing public response with officials on Monday saying growing number of people now preferred to use the mobile phone app expecting to get quicker and better police services.
“We have started getting the peoples response since the helpline was launched last month.
The number of people using the service is growing,” police’s Additional Deputy Inspector General Mohammad Harun-ur-Rashid, who is entrusted with the charge of ICT and telecommunication affairs of the law enforcement agency, told BSS.
He added the people now proffered to use the service as they could directly reach the concerned officials including officers in charge (OCs) of police stations to get their issues or problems redressed.
Officials familiar with the helpline service said in most cases people were using the service to lodge complaints about different types of crimes like drug trading, extortions and issues like illegal occupation of footpaths and traffic jam.
People of Sylhet and Bogra appeared to be top the BD Police Help Line users list, they said.
The app is available at Google Play store while officials said it would also be available at Apple App Store soon and any mobile phone user could use the app by downloading it at any android or iPhone.
The people could send requests seeking police assistance and send messages to officers including ASPs, SPs, DIGs in districts and divisional levels and metropolitan police commissioners, zonal ACs, DCs in metropolitan cities.
Talking to BSS Dhaka’s police super Migan Shafiur said they have so far got 20 complaints from the people after introduction of the app.
“In most cases we acted quickly . . . we have evicted footpaths occupiers and drug spots from South Keraniganj and from another place instantly after getting the complaints through the app,” he said.
Dhaka’s district police administration distributed 27 android phones among their personnel as policemen too need to equip them with the advanced tech cell phones to deliver the helpline service.
Officials said four additional superintendents, seven assistant superintendents and seven officers-in charge of Dhaka have got the android phone sets.
“The app starts working as an ‘interactive interface’ between the people and the police,” Madaripur’s police super Sarwar Hossain said explaining his experience about the service.
