Mahesh Bhagwat, Commissioner of Police, Rachakonda and Anjani Kumar, Additional Director General of Police (Telangana) have been instrumental in triggering a change among the people in the commissonerate. As part of their invariable endeavours of initiating developmental activities in Rachakonda, the latest includes setting up a cell tower at the village of Thippaigudem.
Sharing more details about the initiative, Mahesh says, “Last year, when we conducted a health camp at Rachakonda Fort, there was no mobile network for five hours. We were surprised and shocked. Since technology is connected with communication, we promised the villagers that we would set up a cell tower at Thippaigudem. We are glad that we have fulfilled our promise.” Amid several challenges, it took them around a year to set up the tower. “I spoke to various mobile service providers, but only BSNL expressed willingness to help us in the endeavour. Also, there was some forest area in between, so digging the ground for optical fibre cables was difficult, so was getting a clearance from the forest department. We also needed a room for the tower control and equipment, for which we needed to raise funds. But the gram panchayat and police department contributed for that,” he adds.
Mahesh Bhagwat
Another interesting initiative effectuated by the duo was the banning of bouquets. “For New Year’s Eve, I asked my staff not to greet anyone with bouquets; it’s better to bring books, pencils, pens, etc. We collected all the items and donated it to school kids in the village. We also organised cultural programmes comprising folk songs and poems against superstitions,” Mahesh explains.
Meanwhile Anjani Kumar shares that their main objective is to bring about social change. “We believe if the police can effectuate social change, it’ll be very encouraging and people do believe in the transformation. Also, education is the best tool to create a social impact, revolutionise and transform people into better individuals.”
He adds that they have emphasised the need to initiate a change in the mindset of their staff too. Anjani explains how that can be done, “It is possible by constantly interacting with them, which will enable the staff to empathise with the public. Training traffic cops (at Gandhi hospital) on pulmonary resuscitation will help them provide immediate first aid for cardiac arrest patients. We provided four months training (by partnering with professional coaching centres) for the youth remote villages to prepare for constable recruitment. We had also arranged for shuttle services for their daily pick-up and drop daily,” Anjani. In a first-of-its-kind initiative in the country, the Rachakonda police have also opened two schools. “We have rescued 350 child labourers who came with their parents from Odisha and were working in construction companies here. We have put them in schools and ensured that the site owners pay for their education (along with teachers’ salaries). With the help of an NGO in Odisha, these kids can continue their education even after they go back to their state,” explains Mahesh.
