GRP missed bag full of ammo during Ganeshotsav

If you thought you were safe during the festival of Ganeshotsav due to the heavy security arrangements, you were wrong.

Checkmate: A female constable checks a passenger's bag at a railway station. But a special squad of GRP officers exposed how policemen on duty failed to check or notice a bag full of explosives and weapons during Ganeshotsav. File pic

A surprise check by a special squad of Government Railway Police (GRP) officials revealed that more than 40 GRP officers were slacking on duty.

During Ganeshotsav from September 9 to 18, a squad of around four officers went to several railway stations, on both the central and western line.

The officers, assigned to the task by GRP Commissioner Prabhat Kumar carried a bag full of explosives, weapons and other items banned within railway premises.u00a0

The intention of the surprise check was to gauge the level of security at stations and to see how well officers on duty at these stations checked suspicious objects and frisked people.

The results are shocking, to say the least. While the GRP officials on duty at many places didn't check the bag, there were instances when there was no policeman sitting at the benches meant for them.

Authorities say that action will be taken against those found lazing at work.

"We have sent summonsu00a0to 22 constables from my office, and rest have been summoned by the DCP," said Prabhat Kumar, GRP commissioner.

The officers from the squad added that many of the officials on duty were found talking to each other or simply looking around.

Sometimes, they were absent from their desks.

"We have sent summons to all those who didn't do their duty properly," said B Shirsat, deputy commissioner of police, GRP.

Each one of them will also be fined a sum of Rs 500, apart from facing departmental action.

According to sources, the guilty officials had gone to drink water, eat, or gave other such trivial excuses.

Rs 500
Amount the guilty officials will have to pay. Besides, the fine, the erring officers will also have to face departmental actionu00a0

What the squad found
>> At many places, officials didn't check the bag
>> There was no policeman sitting at the benches
>> Officials were talking to each other or simply looking around
>> They were absent from their desksu00a0