Amid covid19 lockdown, the control room at the office of Divisional Commissioner Kashmir here is receiving distress calls every day from the people.
According to the officials, the control room set up in thewake of lockdown receives 20 to 25 “distress” calls daily on its number01942459760.
Headed by Divisional Commissioner Kashmir Pandurang K Pole,the office operates from 9am to 5pm. Two gazetted officers and a wirelessoperator stationed at the office on alternate basis work in coordination withnodal officers for COVID-19 in districts and other field staff.
The office also receives “distress” calls from outsideJ&K.
Sometimes calls come from Kashmiri residents stuck outsideand relatives of non-local people trapped here, said the officials.
Duty officer, Mohammad Ali Lone, at the control room saidlast week the travel of a patient from Doda who was in Srinagar for histreatment along with his family was facilitated, after a call was received.
The patient and his family, officials said were stuck inSrinagar’s Sanat Nagar area due to lockdown.
“A girl from Sopore called yesterday. She told us that shewas facing vegetable shortage at her home. She also told us about her humblebackground,” an official said, adding that people, mostly daily wagers, werefacing financial problems.
Lone said they also received calls from patients in need ofmedicines. One such call, officials said, was received on April 6 from Garkote,a remote area in Uri, Baramulla.
“It was from Abdul Rashid Chichi, a patient suffering fromheart ailment. He wanted his relative in Srinagar must be allowed to get themedicines for him to Uri,” an official said adding that it was done.
Similarly, another official said, a call from one AltafAhmad, a resident of Saderkote Payeen in Bandipora district, who was sufferingfrom heart ailment and needed a movement pass, was received. The caller alsowanted to get medicines for himself from Srinagar. “He was asked to get it (thepass) from nearest police station,” said an official.
However, Ahmad told Greater Kashmir that since there was nopublic transport, it would be difficult for him to reach Srinagar. “Could I getsome help on that front?” asked Ahmad, a labourer.
Amid lockdown, the office also receives calls forelectricity snag, phone disconnections and water supply interruptions fromseveral areas, said officials.
“Today, we received a call from Shalimar locality aboutelectricity snag. After the call, we reached to our people on the ground and itwas later rectified,” said an official.
Many calls said that had great hope that the helpline wouldhelp them in real terms to get their issues addressed by the authoritiesconcerned.
A BSNL subscriber said he also registered a complaint on thehelpline on Wednesday regarding his phone (2490025) and broadband which remainsdisconnected since March 15. “I made countless complaints to the BSNL torestore my phone connection and broadband, even before the covid19 lockdown,but in vain.”
“It is quite surprising that I am everyday getting SMSesfrom the BSNL regarding the bill for the period the phone never worked, and thephone/broadband continues to remain disconnected,” he said.
He said now that he has made the complaint to the DC Officehelpline, “I hope that my issue will be resolved.”