People associated with essential services were seen queuing up at the offices of the Deputy Commissioners of Police (DCP) across the city on Thursday, the first day for them to apply for passes to commute during the lockdown.
Thousands of people thronged these offices and the police had a tough time ensuring social distancing. Only those with masks were being allowed in and all were compulsorily asked to use sanitiser before entering the station.
To prevent crowding, the police collected information and gave out tokens asking applicants to collect passes at a specified time, in most cases a day later. Senior police officials said that as they had only just begun issuing passes only Thursday morning, they will give a leeway of two days. “We will begin enforcement only after we are convinced that most of those in need have got the passes. Later, we can detain people and seize vehicles of those who don’t have passes. The only exception will be for people who are in the same locality that they live in and have come out to buy essentials,” said a senior police official.
“A bulk of applications being made are from e-commerce platforms and grocers for their staff,” said a city DCP.
However, multiple DCPs The Hindu spoke to reported a large nsumber of applicants seeking passes to leave the city, citing an ill relative, death or some other reason. “Unless it’s a case of a family member’s demise, which can be confirmed, we are not issuing passes to such people. Moreover, these passes are valid only in the city and we have sealed the borders. Private vehicles are not allowed to leave or enter the city,” a senior official said.
