PCO users in Mumbai have to reveal names, addresses

In a new anti-terror initiative, the Mumbai Police have issued instructions to public telephone booth operators to record details of customers.

"PCO operators will now have to record names and contact details of all those who use the telephones. I have issued the instructions, and they are being enforced by my subordinates," Mumbai Police Commissioner Satyapal Singh said.

PCO operators who fail to comply would be booked under CrPc Section 144 — "an order under this section may be directed to a particular individual or to persons in a particular place or area, or to the public generally when frequenting or visiting a particular place or area," reads a provision of the section — Singh said.

The police, however, denied the move was to counter a specific threat. "This is only a general security measure. There is no specific reason behind," said Joint Police Commissioner Sadanand Date.

Singh claimed the initiative would help the police deal with the menace of hoax calls. Trains and flights are the biggest targets of hoax callers, with most hoax calls being made to delay departures when some customer runs late.

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