Chief minister Raghubar Das on Sunday launched the centralised Unified Dial 100 to help a caller in distress get prompt help irrespective of his or her geographical location in the state.

Under the new system, when a caller dials 100, it will reach the state control room in Ranchi, from where it will be forwarded to district police control room concerned for immediate action, within 15 minutes in urban areas from the time of call and within 25 minutes elsewhere. By dialling 100, a caller can access police control room vehicles, police on motorcycles, highway patrol vehicles, ambulances and fire stations.

Inaugurating the system, chief minister Raghubar Das asked the police to leave no stone unturned to ensure help reaches people in the shortest possible time.

"Police should ensure proper and timely help in case of a distress call," Das said in the presence of chief secretary Rajbala Verma, home secretary S.K.G. Rahate, director-general of police D.K. Pandey and other police personnel, as a part of a function at JAP-1, Doranda, to honour police personnel for their commendable performance.

Explaining how this was different from the old helpline number 100 connected through BSNL, deputy SP (control room) T.K. Jha said the system was a part of the crime and criminal tracking network and systems (CCTNS) for better policing efficiency through e-governance. "It has its own centralised portal and server, helping the police identify caller location through GPS. The moment a call is made, the name and location of the caller flashes on screen, saving crucial time," he said.

The Telegraph in Ranchi contacted additional director-general (operations) and police spokesperson R.K. Mallick for a first-hand experience of Unified Dial 100.

On dialling 100 the first time, the system was busy. The second time, an automated voice directed to press 9 after a welcome. Pressed 9, a lady constable received the call asking about the problem. When the identity of the reporter was disclosed, she explained the system politely and promptly.

The move has injected fresh enthusiasm among police across the state.

In Jamshedpur, DSP composite control room (CCR) Sudhir Kumar said, "We can promise the response time for any call will not be more than 15 minutes. In most cases, the police will reach at the spot within five minutes."

He admitted the earlier facility to dial 100 needed help from BSNL and calls would hardly materialise.

"But now, we have an independent set-up with a centralised portal and server at Ranchi police headquarters. The response to a distress call will be fast," he said. "Say, a person from Jamshedpur dials 100 and is asked to dial 9. The distress caller will be connected to Ranchi police headquarters and his location flashed so that the CCR of the district concerned (East Singhbhum in this case) can swing in motion. The CCR will direct the police control room vans in Jamshedpur to reach the trouble spot fast," the DSP said. "CCR Jamshedpur had 30 PCR vans fitted with GPS and wireless sets," he said.

Bokaro SP Y.S. Ramesh agreed. "Getting to know a person's geo-location at the time of his or her call is a great help as it saves time," he said.