Used goods including old saris, soiled quilts, shirts and undergarments sent as relief materials to flood victims.​

KOCHI

A ‘relief’ consignment lands police in a soup 

STAFF REPORTER

KOCHI , SEPTEMBER 07, 2018 08:32 IST

Illustration for The Hindu by Satheesh Vellinezhi  

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Kerala rains 2018

Unusable materials land from A.P. 

A truckload of items, reportedly sent by a senior police officer from Andhra Pradesh as relief materials to flood victims, have landed the Ernakulam Rural police in a soup with the department now looking for a suitable way to dispose it of. The consignment, addressed to another senior police officer with the Kerala police, comprised mostly materials that are unusable.

It was brought to the Armed Reserve Police Camp in Kalamassery early this week. Policemen opened the consignment only to find several used goods including old saris, soiled quilts, shirts and undergarments stashed inside numerous gunny sacks. 

Wasting space, effort

“The quality of these materials came to light only upon opening the shipment for classification before redistribution. This has actually hampered our relief efforts by wasting so much of manpower and space,” said a top official. 

The matter was promptly reported to Rahul.R. Nair, Superintendent of Police (SP), Ernakulam Rural, who, in turn, directed appropriate action.

“The initial plan was to send back the package by the same route. But since the costs involved are huge, the consignor was contacted and asked to take back the stuff. Unable to confirm whether they will act in a timely manner, we are also exploring ways to dispose of these materials,” the official said.

Booking the guilty

Meanwhile, options of booking those who collected the materials as relief materials are also being looked at.

Having initiated a voluntary clean-up mission following the recent floods, the Rural police are embarking on a rebuilding initiative in the economically backward areas along the downstream of the Periyar. 

“To begin with, the extent of damage in the selected areas is being assessed. Our plan is to intervene under the aegis of the Janamaithri police scheme and a consultation process is already on,” the SP said.

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