Hyderabad: Police requesting the residents to keep them posted about their locked houses is not something new. But the Vellore District Police in Tamil Nadu has taken it to the next level by initiating simple technology. They have introduced Google Doc and QR code and prodding the residents to inform about their locked houses in case they have to go on long trips.
In his recent Tweet, Vellore ASP Albert John has unveiled this facility. "Public of Vellore town can inform police if they are leaving their houses overnight. We will keep an eye over your locked houses. Anybody can fill this simple form by clicking on the link or scanning the QR code", he tweeted.
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LOW CODE SOLUTION FOR LOCKED HOUSES.
— ASP Vellore (@AspVellore) September 4, 2021 " class="align-text-top noRightClick twitterSection" data="
Public of vellore town can inform POLICE if they are leaving their houses overnight. We will keep an eye over your locked houses.
Anybody can fill this simple form by clicking on the link or scanning the QR code.https://t.co/FIFpYZNnvr pic.twitter.com/qRkHoab6Vt
">LOW CODE SOLUTION FOR LOCKED HOUSES.
— ASP Vellore (@AspVellore) September 4, 2021
Public of vellore town can inform POLICE if they are leaving their houses overnight. We will keep an eye over your locked houses.
Anybody can fill this simple form by clicking on the link or scanning the QR code.https://t.co/FIFpYZNnvr pic.twitter.com/qRkHoab6VtLOW CODE SOLUTION FOR LOCKED HOUSES.
— ASP Vellore (@AspVellore) September 4, 2021
Public of vellore town can inform POLICE if they are leaving their houses overnight. We will keep an eye over your locked houses.
Anybody can fill this simple form by clicking on the link or scanning the QR code.https://t.co/FIFpYZNnvr pic.twitter.com/qRkHoab6Vt
When clicked, the Google Doc requests the user to fill in the basic information. The information requested includes the name of the house owner, address, any valid identity card. The house owner had to fill the date of departure and date of return in the form, mentioning the nearest police station and add their mobile number.
ASP Albert John told ETV Bharat over the phone that it is a simple 'low code' method of collecting information from the public. The usual practice is that police go on Beat Patrol every day and physically take note of the locked houses. On average, police spot 100 to 150 houses every day in town limits but there are chances that some houses could be missed out. "We usually request the public to provide their details in nearby police stations. Instead of visiting the police station in person, we are asking them to use simple technology in which they have to log in their details from the comfort of their homes and leave for long trips", he said.
The ASP's Tweet was well received by the Twitterati as many hailed the initiative. Suggestions also poured in. "Appreciate your intention. It is easy to send a fake Google doc form and bogus QR code in WhatsApp forwards. It might turn into a disaster when people give their address and the day of vacating the home, directly to thieves. Better to implement this from ".gov.in" website", suggested a Twitter user.
Answering these doubts, ASP said that one respondent can't see what others have keyed in their Google Docs. Moreover, the data is first collated at the ASP office before being sent to headquarters and if there is any manipulation, it could be weeded away. "Even if a miscreant decides to provide the fake address of a locked house, it is not going to cost anything to the police. The beat patrol system is always there to verify the houses and if there is a doc with a fake address, it could be deleted," he reasoned. Hacking into a police website to learn about the locked homes is a far-fetched idea of the robbers, he pointed out.
Lauding the initiative, some of the Twitter users also enquired if such an initiative is available in their locality.
