The new building of Tamando police station, the biggest in the state. Picture by Ashwinee Pati

Bhubaneswar, Aug. 24: A new police station equipped with CCTV cameras and sentry posts at four corners was inaugurated today at Tamando.

The biggest so far in the state, the police station has been constructed under the Ama Thana project of the Odisha State Police Housing and Welfare Corporation. Tamando is also being described as the state’s first model police station.

Inaugurating the three-storey police station at Tamando beside the National Highway No. 5, director-general of police (DGP) Prakash Mishra said it would help reduce crimes in the area and provide a proper atmosphere for the policemen to work. “More such model police stations will come up in the state in the coming days,” said Mishra.

Unlike other police stations, this one has sentry posts at four corners on the terrace where armed policemen keep vigil. A barbed wire fence separates it from its surroundings.

The chairman-cum-managing director of the welfare corporation Satyajit Mohanty said the ground floor of the building had nine custody rooms fitted with CCTV cameras for criminals, a CCTV monitoring room, reception room, conference hall and malakhana (godown). The first floor would house the office of the inspector in charge and a restroom for officers. A barrack for 50 forces, a gymnasium and a kitchen would be housed on the second floor. “This police station has all the basic facilities for policemen, criminals and common people, unlike other police stations,” said Mohanty.

For a budget of Rs 1.69 crore, the police station was built within a year. Sources said this police station was waiting for the chief minister’s nod to inaugurate it for the past four months. When he could not make time for the inauguration, the DGP did the honours.

“Unlike other police stations that are jam-packed, this would have free space and exclusive cubicles and workstations for officers. Every activity of the accused lodged in the single-celled hazats will be monitored through the CCTVs,” said the inspector in charge of this new police station, Rajat Ray.

The areas from Jatani and Khandagiri and a part of the Chandaka police area would be included in the limits of this police station.

Sources in the welfare corporation said the construction of two other police stations and one police outpost in Bhubaneswar were also going on under the Ama Thana project. The work for Nandankanan police station has started with a budget of Rs 90 lakh. Work on the police station at Uttara, with a budget of Rs 50 lakh, and police outpost at Pahal, with a budget of Rs 30 lakh, is going to start shortly.

Talking about curbing crimes in the city, the DGP said around 500 constables and other auxiliary forces would be inducted into the Cuttack-Bhubaneswar police to help curb crime in the twin cities of Bhubaneswar and Cuttack. “We are going to prepare a database of criminals and keep vigil. We are trying to intensify police patrolling in the city to curb crime,” said the DGP.