Extra cover: Elderly people at a park in Patna

Patna, June 7: Waking up from slumber, police are all set to take extra care of senior citizens — soft targets of criminals.

Each police station would maintain a separate register containing details of complaints of atrocities against senior citizens. Moreover, there would be a police station-level committee to co-ordinate with them.

The initiatives — part of the state police’s action plan to check offences against senior citizens following a directive from the Bihar State Human Rights Commission (BSHRC) member Neel Mani — were taken a bit late, though. Expressing his displeasure over the police’s failure to send the status report on the directive to the commission on May 31, the deadline set for it, he said: “A fresh letter has been issued to the DGP (director-general of police), asking him to send a police officer on June 21 with the report on action taken by the police for the safety and security of the life and property of the senior citizens.”

Acting on the initial letter of Neel Mani, the police headquarters has directed the station house officers (SHOs) to conduct a survey and prepare a list of senior citizens living in their jurisdiction. A representative of the police station would visit them on a regular basis with a social activist to ensure their complaints are disposed of at the earliest.

The SHOs have also been told to set up one or more volunteer committees under their jurisdiction to maintain regular contact with senior citizens, police and the administrative officials. Besides, they have been assigned to ascertain the antecedents of the domestic helps staying with senior citizens.

An additional director-general of police, assigned to monitor the initiatives, said all the superintendents of police (SPs) have been asked to accomplish the task on a priority basis. “The move is a part of the action plan mooted by the state police headquarters to ensure safety and security of senior citizens and their property, vulnerable to crime of all sorts,” he added.

BSHRC member and former DGP Neel Mani had initially issued a directive to the state police chief, Abhayanand, to take certain measures for the welfare and the protection of the life and property of senior citizens under the provisions of Bihar Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizens Rules, 2012. The government notified it on September 7, 2012.