Youth Dials 112 asking Cops to find his Missing Footwear kept at a City Temple
Mangaluru: The ‘112’ Emergency Response Support System (ERSS) was launched in Mangaluru as a pan-India service of the single emergency helpline number ‘112’ for Immediate Assistance Services from Police (100), Fire (101), Health (108) and Women (1090). The general public instead of dialling 100 has to dial 112. The service of the ERSS is accessible from any corner of the city so that help can arrive without any delay. Even if people call 100, it will be routed to 112. For accidents, crime, fire, natural disasters or any other emergency, or to rescue an animal, people can call 112. Looking at whether the emergency relates to police, fire or health, messages will be passed on to the departments concerned for immediate response. As many as 19 Hoysala vehicles of the city police are linked to the system and they will be the first responders.
However, a strange incident took place where a youth had called the 112 helpline number asking the cops to trace his missing footwear (CLOGS). For the uninitiated, ‘clogs’ were wooden shoes worn originally by peasants in the Netherlands in the 13th century. Later, this variety of footwear became popular as a fashion statement. People can even call 112 to rescue animals stuck in wells etc, however, this latest ‘rescue’ story is even more bizarre as a young man sent Mangaluru police into a tizzy with his distress call – to trace his clogs that went missing from a hall at Sharavu Temple in City.
Responding to a call of duty, Mangaluru North police managed to identify the person through the CCTV footage who had stolen the pair of footwear, though it is yet to be recovered. According to the police, the complainant had visited the hall for a function and left his footwear/clogs outside. After lunch, when he was about to leave the venue, he realised his footwear was missing. Exasperated as he was, he dialled 112, claiming that his footwear had been stolen. The call was diverted to Mangaluru North police station for follow-up action.
CLOGS Footwear
Soon, police sprang into action and a team visited the spot to examine the CCTV footage, which revealed that a labourer who was at work at the premises had stolen the footwear. A search is still on for the culprit, though police said they could not ascertain the price of the footwear as the complainant had failed to produce a purchase bill. A quick scan of one e-commerce site showed a pair of clogs for an adult priced between Rs 515 and Rs 1,600, approximately.
According to Kuldeep Kumar R Jain, the police commissioner, Mangaluru city police receive about 45 distress calls on a daily average on the ERSS number that is available round the clock, adding that the service is still underutilised. While Mangaluru police have been reaching out to the public, raising awareness on its 24×7 Emergency Response Support System (ERSS) and encouraging them to call the dedicated 112 number when in need, little did they know that someone would take to ERSS and send them on a shoe hunt in right earnest.
“The police have responded positively and taken the complaint of footwear theft after we were alerted on 112. The CCTV footage is being examined. Though a few calls may seem silly, the intent behind such acts might be serious as it is likely to disturb the social peace and so it becomes necessary for the police to visit the spot and examine the case,” added the police commissioner.
