Kol cops order 18 new sirens for police stations
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Kolkata: Weeks after the Union home ministry directed the states to be war-ready by carrying out emergency drills, where sirens were to play a vital part, Kolkata Police has decided to set up sirens — similar to ones in north and south Kolkata — across its new divisions of Jadavpur, Behala, and Bhangar.
In all, 18 sirens will be installed, said sources.
Lalbazar has floated tenders for four police stations at Bhangar and at Netaji Nagar. The other police stations will eventually acquire the sirens.
According to the tender document, the sirens should be electronically operated, with an operating voltage of 220VAC (+/-5%) 50Hz single-phase and a range of 400 m-500 m (diametrically). They will come equipped with an auto switch-over facility from AC to battery at the time of a power cut.
There should be an additional option for a speaker as well.
"These are the newer police stations. While the sirens at various police stations were last used for war purposes in 1971, the older ones were frequently used until the late 90s. Recently, when we began taking stock of the sirens following the Pahalgam attacks, we decided it was a handy device to alert hundreds at the same time. We chose those police stations where sirens did not exist before.
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For the record, a few police stations added to the KP area in the past 14 years, though, have sirens installed by Bengal Police," said an officer at Lalbazar.
Police sources revealed that former commissioner Soumen Mitra requested a report on air sirens' conditions in police stations. While this initially sparked activity, the report was never completed after Mitra's retirement.
This new initiative comes as part of a broader modernisation effort by Kolkata Police to enhance emergency response capabilities, claimed sources.
Senior officials confirmed that the new installations will be integrated with the existing emergency response system and regular maintenance protocols will be established to ensure operational readiness.
Local residents have welcomed the move. "Having a warning system in place will give us a sense of security," said Amit Banerjee, a resident of Netaji Nagar.
The department has also announced plans to create a public awareness campaign about the various siren signals and appropriate responses, which will be rolled out alongside the installation process.
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