Jamshedpur: Chakulia's Bharat Murmu (54), a resident of Chakulia in Ghatshila subdivision, spent an entire day - October 28 - to search for Birsanagar ST/SC Harijan thana to lodge a complaint against a rice mill owner for using derogatory words. Later, he said there was no board or signage to indicate that the Birsanagar one was an ST/SC thana.

Baliguma's Badal Mukhi suffered the same fate. Wanting to lodge an FIR against a factory owner in Mango for using derogatory language, he returned from the Birsanagar thana twice as he could not find a board at the entrance specifying it was a ST/SC Harijan thana. Mango police later told him that Birsanagar was still the ST/SC Harijan thana.

The board indicating Birsanagar police station was an ST/SC thana was removed four months ago, inconveniencing many marginalised Dalits and tribals in and around Jamshedpur.

Notified in 2012, Birsanagar thana is the only ST/SC thana of the 18 police stations in East Singhbhum.

A state government notification in 2012 states that each district should have one Mahila police station and one special thana for ST/SC and Harijan cases.

According to records at Birsanagar thana, two or three cases are lodged daily on atrocities against Dalits and tribals. They range from verbal slurs to mental and physical torture.

The lack of a board at the entrance however confuses or intimidates many tribals and Dalits, said Roshan Solanki, an executive member of Adivasi Mool Nivasi Sangarsh Samiti.

"We informed East Singhbhum DC Amit Kumar and SSP Anoop T. Mathew earlier this week saying that tribals, especially those coming from villagers and not used to the city, are scared to enter Birsanagar thana without the board specifying it is indeed the ST/SC Harijan police station," Solanki said.

Asked, Birsanagar OC Upender Narayan Singh said the board was removed inadvertently. " Thana renovation was on, so the board was removed. We will install it again and ensure its better visibility too," OC Singh said.