Gandhinagar, Feb 3: Gujarat government will be launching `Help Emergency Assistance Rescue Terminal' (HEART), a helpline which would enable women seek police help instantaneously through mobile phones.
Additional Chief Secretary, Home, S K Nanda told PTI that the helpline would be launched on March 8. Initially, it would be operated in Ahmedabad on a pilot basis before being tried in other parts of the state.
The toll-free helpline number would be announced on the same day. The state has tied up with telecom service providers for this project.
The software will connect the caller to the city police control room. Even if a woman is not in a position to speak, police would be able to track her location from the phone signals. The nearest police mobile van will then rush to the site.
Reviewing the law and order situation in the city here against the backdrop of rising crime, Nanda said the "city police have been asked to spread awareness about crime prevention by publicising the do's and dont's through the media."
For preventing vehicle thefts, he emphasised community policing where a large number of vehicles are parked outside. He also urged the Police Commissioner to ensure speedy crime detection.
"Preventive advertisements should be put out in print and electronic media to check the menace of fake police and police personnel should show their identity cards to public," he said.
About deployment of homeguards for traffic-related duties, he said "three hundred additional homeguards will be provided to city police for managing traffic."
