City police commissioner Supratim Sarkar on Monday asked officers in charge of police stations to be more “visible”, “empathetic” and “responsive” towards people who come in times of distress.

Sarkar was speaking at his first crime conference after taking charge as Kolkata Police commissioner on January 31. The meeting, held at the Alipore Bodyguard Lines on Monday afternoon, was attended by officers of the rank of inspector and above.

“Officers were asked to be more visible on the roads, to be responsive and empathetic towards people who come to police stations, and to be polite to the common people,” said an officer who was at the conference.

Allegations have frequently surfaced against the police for refusing to register complaints, often citing jurisdictional issues, or for being inattentive while a distressed person narrates his or her grievance. Sources close to the commissioner said one of Sarkar’s first instructions to the force was to give a “patient hearing” to everyone who approaches a police station.

Sources said Sarkar reiterated on Monday that no complaint should be refused on the grounds of a “jurisdiction conflict”.

Sarkar also stressed the importance of maintaining “institutional hygiene” at police stations. He said the cleanliness of washrooms, kitchens and barracks was as important as that of the sheresta, or front desk, and the office of the officer-in-charge.

Sources said police stations would be encouraged to compete with one another in maintaining cleanliness and hygiene.

Sarkar also asked officers to focus equally on traditional crimes and cyber crimes. “He said crime has moved from the streets to the screens of phones and laptops,” said another officer present at the conference.

A senior officer said the new commissioner’s immediate priority was improving police behaviour at police stations. “He said detailed discussions on crime case studies would come later. Today, the focus was on sensitising the force,” the officer said.