Kochi: Rail commuters can travel without fear this Onam, thanks to the first of its kind ‘Operation Maveli’ initiative by the railway police under which combing will be done in all night trains running through the State, both by cops in uniform and in mufti.
“It’s a joint initiative by the Government Railway police and the Railway Protection Force that will be launched from Tuesday for the next 14 days. A total of 575 police personnel have been sourced from various regions to undertake the massive exercise,” said a senior police officer.
Earlier, only a handful of trains running through the Thiruvananthapuram division had escort facility. To ensure the success of the drive, even most of the police personnel won’t know how the mufti police is being deployed.
“Only four top police officers from both the forces will be informed of their action. The mufti squad personnel have been given mobile gadgets and instructions will be given to them at the last minute regarding which train to travel and how much distance to cover,” the officer said.
The trains include even the weekly and passenger services. “The exercise is being undertaken since thefts and petty crimes are committed during festive seasons like Onam when there’s a heavy rush”, he said.
