Now, Ludhiana police start night patrolling

LUDHIANA: Police has started ‘Yankee’ patrolling (night in police parlance) on the highways and in periphery villages of Ludhiana district to check the spate of highway robberies. It had become difficult for the 130 Police Control Room (PCR) motorcycles to cover the area effectively.
Night patrolling in the district has been started with 11 Elvin-operated Yankees (which resembles a small truck) which appear to be burning a hole in the polie’s pocket.
Superintendent of Police (detective) Gurprit Singh Toor says the police has yet to calculate the budget required to run these vehicles every night. Four policemen on each Elvin are on duty from 9 pm to 4 in the morning. These policemen are excused from regular duty.
The PCR network failed to cover entire region successfully. The sounding of the Yankee hooter at dhabas at night is expected to keep the villages free of robbers, Toor added.
Toor explains, ‘‘All SPs’ readers, including mine go for patrolling once a week, so do several other policemen attached to other officers at different posts. Consequently, 44 policemen are on duty each night, making it over 300 policemen in a week.’’ These officials are given a briefing every night at the police lines.
Toor says that the step was initiated by SSP, Ludhiana, Narinderpal Singh following the robbery at Octroi post at Kohara, which was followed by a similar incident at Jagraon and Phagwara.