Residents of Buddha Nagar interact with a police officer on Sunday. Picture by Ashwinee Pati

Bhubaneswar, Dec. 1: The residents of Buddha Nagar within the Laxmi Sagar police limits will join hands with cops to check crimes in the area. This was decided at the police-public interface held at Buddha Nagar today.

The residents agreed to constitute a 30-member special committee that will patrol along with the police during night. This was fourth such meeting of the city police in the recent times. “The police needs cooperation from the local residents to nab the criminal. The joint effort of the police and the local residents can help in crime control,” said police commissioner R.P. Sharma.

According to the new venture, select residents, especially youths, will join the police in patrolling on purely voluntary basis.

“As the local youths are well aware of the residents, they can identify the suspicious elements,” said a police official. During the interaction, the residents raised several issues, including the need for intensifying night patrolling, quick response at the time of emergency and traffic regulations in the area, especially from Kalpana Square to Laxmi Sagar Square. Some residents also demanded police outpost to be set up at Chintamaniswar and Buddha Nagar to curb incidents of snatching, burglary, and eve teasing.

The local residents also complained about the flourishing sex racket through mushrooming of beauty parlours and rampant sale of brown sugar and cannabis at Station Bazaar.

Laxmisagar Police Station is at present serving more than 1.5 lakh residents of the area. Several unregistered slums here are known for drugs peddling and illegal sale of liquor, creating problems for local residents.

“People can be spotted drinking alcohol openly in the shops beside NH-203. During the past six months, the area has witnessed several crimes including cases of robbery and snatching. Senior citizens and women are also being targeted by the goons,” said Chitta Das, a local resident.