The police have written to the Kolkata Metropolitan Development Authority (KMDA) that CCTVs must be installed at the public swimming pool at Rabindra Sarobar. Lifeguards must be present while the pool is open, said the police.

The KMDA, custodian of the Sarobar, is also considering floating barriers in the water to demarcate an area beyond which people should not go.

KMDA officials said they may also ask the swimming clubs to depute their trainers as lifeguards.

The letter follows the drowning of a 16-year-old boy from Burdwan at the pool on June 16.

“We have suggested CCTVs should be installed at the swimming pool. There should be lifeguards while people swim in the pool,” said an officer of Rabindra Sarobar police station.

“Two lifesavers will be present to prevent any untoward incident at the public swimming pool and ensure no one who doesn’t know how to swim hits the pool. We may even ask the swimming clubs at the Sarobar to help with the services of trained lifeguards,” a senior KMDA official said.

The boy’s death had exposed safety deficiencies at the public facility at the Rabindra Sarobar.

“We have started drawing up a Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for visitors to the pool. It would be readied after a meeting with senior officers of Kolkata Police sometime next week,” the official said. “A similar SOP was drawn up for the rowing members of the clubs hemming the Rabindra Sarobar.”

The SOP will declare that only swimmers will be allowed to hit the pool, sources said.

“We will also set up boards saying certain spots in the pool which will be kept off
the bounds of swimmers because of the depth,” the official said.