Bangalore: Now,BlackBerry to assist cops smoothen traffic

After experimenting with various palmtops over the years,the Bangalore traffic police has finally completed its technology-aided traffic enforcement programme with the induction of BlackBerry phones....

After experimenting with various palmtops over the years,the Bangalore traffic police has finally completed its technology-aided traffic enforcement programme with the induction of BlackBerry phones for all its traffic officers starting at the rank of assistant sub-inspectors.

Karnataka Home Minister V S Acharya and senior Bangalore police officials on Wednesday announced that project BlackBerry assisted Traffic Enforcement was on its way,signalling the start of a paperless regime in the traffic police department.

The Home Minister said the BlackBerry induction programme involving 370 phones has been completed and traffic officers would now be linked through their phone to bluetooth supported printers.

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Initiated on an experimental basis in 2004 with handheld devices given by the makers of Simputer,the traffic police experimented with various hand-held devices before deciding on the BlackBerry in 2008.

Bangalore Police Commissioner Shankar Bidari said the use of automated devices by traffic officers would provide a robust database of traffic offenders,real time access to the offence history of drivers and enhance punishment for habitual offenders. It would also facilitate a real time Management Information System that assesses the performance of officers,the types of vehicles penalised and offences booked while leaving little scope for ambiguities on offences and fines,the Commissioner said.

The automated traffic enforcement programme initiated with a Rs 40 crore traffic modernisation budget allocation will also see creation of data storage facilities. Carbon papers and notice books will become history in the City Traffic Police, Additional Commissioner of Police (Traffic) Praveen Sood said.