Screenshot of the Facebook page of Rourkela police

Rourkela, June 19: The police superintendent here has recently opened a Facebook page to better interact with the city residents.

Rourkela police superintendent Amitendra Nath Sinha has sought people to visit the page and post their grievances, suggestions and provide feedback. People are being encouraged to discuss ways for better policing in the city. The page is called “Rourkela SP” and has Sinha’s picture with the image of a police beacon with “Superintendent of Police Rourkela” written in the background.

“We have requested citizens to visit the page and follow it. We have also requested people to post photos and videos as feedback to our services and sought people to take part in various initiatives of ours,” said Sinha.

Opened on June 6, the page so far has 428 likes. “It’s a small step taken to build a channel of communication with the citizens of Rourkela. Citizens are requested to post their feedback,” says the page description.

A senior official said Rourkela police recognised the fact that in the age of computer and Internet, they could not stay behind. Various agencies and the public in general have been harnessing this new media to enhance the communication system. Rourkela residents are Internet savvy and those who do not have the time to interact with the police on a regular basis may post their suggestions and grievances on this page.

“We hope this page will be a good communicative forum for the people of the city, and we will be able to provide better service to the citizens when they open up with us,” said Sinha.

Residents praised this effort of the police superintendent and said it would be helpful in effective policing if they really listened to the suggestions of the citizens. “We are happy that they have come up with such a thing. But it’s to be seen if the SP takes steps against his personnel if we post things showing police atrocities or negligence or unethical activities. We hope this endeavour of the police will yield good results for them as well as the common people,” said an engineering student. The Cuttack-Bhubaneswar police also have a Facebook page.