Now smart phone replaces police station visits

New Delhi: Delhi Police are getting tech-savvy, and how! Be it a complaint about anything lost or stolen while travelling, or to know the status of jammed roads, or even for a police clearance certificate for immigration - all you need to do is click on a special smartphone app.

To avail of these facilities, you have to visit the Delhi Police website, www.delhipolice.nic.in, choose the web applications which includes Lost Report, Traffic Unit, and Police Clearance Certificate, and download on your smartphone. These applications were launched by Delhi Police on Feb 27, May 8 and Aug 8 respectively.

"These web applications can also be downloaded from the Google Play Store," a police officer told IANS.

The Lost Report application helps you to register online complaints of documents or cellphones lost while travelling.

This will save the complainant precious time. From having to wait for hours to file a complaint and then getting an acceptance letter stamped by the local police, all it would require now is a click on the app.

"The application does away with the manual complaint registration process and generates the complaint through a digital interface," said the official.

According to the official, the app will be helpful to foreigners who lose their passports or identity proofs and are not able to identify the place where they lost the documents or find out the police station area where to file a complaint.

The official added that the app automatically generates a digital acknowledgement letter with a signature that will be accepted by all legal agencies.

Traffic Unit, a cell-phone based application launched by the traffic unit of Delhi Police, was launched May 8. It helps commuters get instant traffic updates, calculates the taxi and auto fares to be paid according to distance, helps file complaints of non-working traffic signals and fetches all related information for the users on their smartphones.

The mobile application is currently available on Android phones and can easily be downloaded from Google Play Store.

"This traffic related application will soon be available on Windows and Apple Store," a traffic police official, requesting anonymity, told IANS.

The app will enable people to utilise the e-services provided by Delhi Traffic Police like getting information about traffic alerts and advisories to plan their journeys in advance.

The app will also help people assess the fare charges to be paid to auto/Taxi /Radio Cab drivers, calculate distance travelled and shortest route to be taken for journey in Delhi.

"Complaints can be lodged against TSR/Taxi drivers for misbehavior, refusal and overcharging. Commuters can also access information about vehicles towed away by Traffic Police when parked improperly. Direct calls could be made to Emergency Numbers," a traffic police official told IANS.

Delhi Traffic Police has upgraded its existing website to include detailed information about various aspects of traffic management, including prosecution statistics, congestion points, and areas prone to water-logging.

"Location of traffic signals, accident prone areas, road safety activities, traffic related issues, jurisdictional information, status of e-challans, vital traffic corridors, information about traffic offices and officers are also available on the traffic police web site," the official added.

The Police Clearance Certificate (PCC) application, launched Aug 8, is aimed to help people who require police clearance certificate for immigration or employment purposes.

This app has till now received 208 applications with 117 residents being issued the certificate within seven days.

Applicants can also approach Delhi Police on 011-23236040 on all working days from 9.30 a.m. to 6.30 p.m. in case of any difficulty in accessing the service.

Delhi-based applicants can apply for PCC from anywhere in the world online without being required to visit the office of the Deputy Commissioner of Police.

"Once an online application is filed and online payment is made, the application will be suitably processed and a printable, digitally signed police clearance certificate will be sent to the applicant via email within seven working days," the official told IANS.

The PCC request will bear a unique number which can be used for future search and retrieval within a specific period.

"An individual or a company can apply for Police Clearance Certificate by going on the Delhi Police website and getting the certificate within seven working days," a police official said.

According to the official about 100,000 people are expected to benefit from this scheme annually.

"People hesitate to approach police stations. With the launch of these apps, people are getting the facility with the help of internet," a police official, on condition of anonymity, told IANS.

"This facility has really helped Delhi Police reduce their manual work load," he added.