Kolkata Police have launched the Bondhu Kolkata initiative to help reunite people separated from their families and companions during the Durga Puja crowds, with 10 dedicated vehicles set to patrol the city from Panchami until Vijayadashami.
Senior police officers inaugurated the vehicles at the force’s headquarters in Lalbazar. The patrols will operate across various parts of Kolkata, including areas around Puja pandals, and will remain active until the early hours of the morning.
The initiative is designed to assist people who lose track of relatives or companions during the festive rush. Police officers have urged visitors not to panic if they become separated from their families, advising them to approach the nearest police personnel for help.
Children are considered particularly vulnerable in crowded areas, according to sources at Lalbazar. Each Bondhu Kolkata vehicle will carry a sub-inspector or assistant sub-inspector, a constable, a woman constable and a representative of a voluntary organisation. Several state government departments and voluntary groups are partnering with the police for the programme.
The vehicles will carry balloons, chips and chocolates for children who become separated from their families. Police personnel will interact with them in a friendly and reassuring manner before taking them to the nearest police station, where female police personnel will ensure that missing children and elderly people are looked after.
The initiative also includes coordination between Puja organisers, police stations and guardians. If a missing child is reported at a Puja marquee, the information will be passed to the relevant police station, which will then notify other police stations across Kolkata. The network is intended to improve the chances of reuniting children and elderly people with their families.
The Bondhu Kolkata teams will also visit Puja pandals to check whether children or elderly people have been reported missing. Patrol personnel will monitor city streets during the night and take individuals who appear to be lost to a police station for assistance.
The name Bondhu Kolkata, meaning Friend Kolkata, reflects the initiative’s stated purpose of providing direct support during one of the city’s busiest annual public events. Its deployment places family reunification alongside routine crowd and traffic management during the Durga Puja period.
The patrol vehicles will remain operational from Panchami through Vijayadashami, with police teams continuing to respond to reports of missing persons and coordinate information across Kolkata police stations.
